MILFORD, PA — The confusing world of federal-state grants and their eligibility requirements remained unclear on September 7 as the Pike Commissioners hosted a second public hearing for Pike’s new, 2017 round of Community Development Block Grants (CDBG).

The federal grants, doled out by the states, are primarily focused on aiding low- and middle-income residents, but disbursement frequently requires several years of review and approvals. County CDBG Coordinator Marvin Brotter’s hearings are usually pro-forma affairs, often without any public comment. This time, some comment resulted from the rejection of a program funding English as a second language.

During the hearing, Brotter introduced two changes, impacting 2013 and 2015 grants. They included a 2015 request that would have provided funds for the Safe Haven domestic abuse program and text books for the Wayne-Pike Adult Literacy (WPAL) program, which provides language and reading training in English as a second language.

WPAL funding was not approved because Wayne County is a partner in the program, and low- and middle-income impact was not documented. Safe Haven funding was withheld because it did not document that the training to be funded was for low- and middle-income clients.

A member of the WPAL board of directors asked why bidding for text books was questioned when only one publisher provides the needed texts.

Brotter said WPAL has to establish that there is only one publisher, but added that the problem might be corrected.

Following the hearing, the commissioners approved several required CDBG-related compliance resolutions, one of them related to a requirement for the printing of program-related advertising in Spanish. Brotter noted that the county is in compliance, printing Spanish advertising in Lehman Township, where a sizable portion of the population is of Hispanic background.

This, following the WPAL decision, prompted a comment that the program coordinators appeared to be more interested in spending alternative language advertising money than providing English language training.

Brotter replied that he could not speak for the program, but Commissioner Rich Caridi added, “This is federal money. Federal lunacy follows federal money.”

Additionally, during the hearing, funding for 2013 was to be transferred from the Matamoras Methodist Church, which failed to match funds for an emergency generator, to supplement inadequate funds for new siding on the Matamoras firehouse.

As for the coming CDBG year, Brotter said the $248,173 available for new funding is scheduled for single-family, owner-occupied home rehabilitations.

In February, the commissioners announced plans to devote $26,250 of new CDBG appropriations toward expanded drug and alcohol counseling services for the Pike County Correctional Facility.

That plan was not mentioned during Brotter’s presentation last week.