Representative Chrissy Houlahan with Chester County Commissioners’ Chair Josh Maxwell (left) and Chester County CEO David Byerman (right) at the Capitol building in Washington D.C. last week.
Chester County Government leaders are ramping up efforts to safeguard critical federal funding that supports essential services for county residents. Just last week, the County Commissioners and executive leadership mobilized, holding high-level discussions with senior staff from the offices of U.S. Senators John Fetterman and David McCormick.
Chester County Commissioners’ Chair Josh Maxwell and County CEO David Byerman also traveled to Washington, D.C. last week for in-person meetings with Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan and national organizations including the National Association of Counties (NACo) and the International City/County Management Association (ICMA).
“These meetings with senate staff and with Representative Houlahan were productive and constructive, and laid the groundwork for ongoing engagement in the critical months ahead,” said Commissioner Maxwell.
“Federal dollars account for more than $68 million of Chester County’s $730 million annual budget, and recent unilateral freezes and rollbacks have placed this funding at risk,” added Maxwell. “The ‘will they-won’t they’ day-by-day uncertainty has been threatening crucial support for our most vulnerable residents. So, we feel it’s time for Chester County to mount a ‘full court press’ – addressing the issues now and directly.”
While in the nation’s capital, Chester County CEO David Byerman met with NACo CEO Matthew Chase for a full hour, discussing strategies to strengthen Chester County’s advocacy on the national stage.
County leadership actions focus on programs that help those experiencing homelessness and food insecurity, those in need of affordable housing projects, health programs, public transit systems, transportation infrastructure, and workforce development.
The most significant of the announced cuts is a $7.3 million reduction to the County’s Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity (ELC) funding—resources that support public health education and disease investigation programs.
“As our Public Health officials note, without this funding it will be incredibly difficult to properly support the prevention and mitigation of ongoing outbreaks of infectious diseases like measles and whooping cough,” noted County Commissioner Marian Moskowitz.
“Some of these cuts have been temporarily blocked by the courts, pending constitutional and procedural review, but other funding streams—such as those supporting libraries, emergency services, historic preservation, and community development—remain vulnerable to future reductions,” added Commissioner Moskowitz.
Chester County Commissioner Eric Roe voiced support for the federal government’s efforts to root out inefficiency, while emphasizing the importance of maintaining key funding streams for Chester County residents. “I commend the White House’s efforts to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse, and to reduce federal spending,” Roe said. “At the same time, I want to ensure that critical programs serving Chester County’s most vulnerable men, women and children are protected.”
To support ongoing advocacy efforts, county staff are developing dynamic tracking tools to monitor at-risk funding in real time. These tools will be shared with Congressional offices to help lawmakers better understand the local impact of proposed cuts. Ongoing consultations are planned for the weeks and months to come.
