CTA presents ridership data as board debates $60,000 senior-services shortfall

Mike Riso, executive director of CTA, presented service and billing data to the Harrison County Board of Supervisors as the board examined a disputed senior-services payment. "We moved 13,637 passengers in the first 8 months," Riso told supervisors, adding that CTA had provided 6,930 service hours through May and that annualized hours project to about 10,396.

The main point of contention was a roughly $60,000 amount connected to senior-services hours that the board said it had not paid. Supervisors said some group-shopping runs were returned to county senior services in October and raised questions about whether the county is double-paying for services or paying for runs CTA no longer provides. Jeff Clark, who identified himself to the meeting as executive director of Harrison County Senior Services, described taking on shopping, medical runs and dialysis transports after CTA stopped group-shopping runs in October: "I'm Jeff Clark, I'm the executive director of Harrison County Senior Services... our shopping stuff was cut. Prior to that... we picked that up and we're doing on-demand doctor runs as well." He said the county has purchased buses and hired drivers to assume services and estimated about $100,000 in costs tied to that transition.

Riso and supervisors discussed billing practices and documentation; Riso proposed monthly invoicing tied to documented hours and sign-off by the senior-services director to avoid double payment. He also summarized how Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grants typically cover roughly 70% of eligible costs, leaving the local government responsible for the remainder. The board directed staff to work with CTA and senior services to clarify hours, produce monthly invoices, and reach a budget understanding for FY27.