The Reader Beat: County Council Notes from September 8, 2026

Constituents spoke about the Human Relations Commission (HRC) and the importance of selecting a director. Abdullah Washington, a sitting HRC advisory board member, expressed frustration at funding cuts made during the Davis administration and lack of appointments to the board. “In 2021, Erie County Council declared racism to be a public health crisis. This is the work of the HRC. These are the types of things that we are supposed to be addressing in this community,” Washington said.

I attended the County Council meeting on Sept. 8 at 6 p.m. Constituents spoke about the Human Relations Commission (HRC) and the importance of selecting a director. Abdullah Washington, a sitting HRC advisory board member, expressed frustration at funding cuts made during the Davis administration and lack of appointments to the board. "In 2021, Erie County Council declared racism to be a public health crisis. This is the work of the HRC. These are the types of things that we are supposed to be addressing in this community," Washington said. Constituent Cyndi Treiber, who has raised repeated concerns over the conditions in the Erie County Prison, spoke on the prison's current healthcare contract with Armor Health of Erie County, stating its hundreds of lawsuits since its founding in 2004. Armor Health began servicing the prison in December of 2023, the same year its parent company, Armor Health Management, liquidated its assets. "We kept them and then we brought their mental health services into the prison," Treiber said. 

The council addressed the following ordinances and resolutions: 

• An ordinance amending the Erie County Land and Subdivision Ordinance remained tabled. 
• An ordinance revising expenditures of $517,632 from the 2026 Mental Health/Intellectual Disabilities Fund Budget for the creation of new line items for State Cost Centers passed unanimously. 
• An ordinance approving a transfer between departments in the amount of $171,925 for telephone upgrades passed unanimously.
• An ordinance amending Article III, Section 1E of the Administrative Code (Purchasing Code) of Erie County was amended to remove language excluding county authorities. Both the amendment and the ordinance passed unanimously. 
• An ordinance approving the amendments to the Erie County Human Resource Code was amended. The amended ordinance passed unanimously. 
• A resolution authorizing the County of Erie to enter into a contract with the City of Erie for Community Development Block Grant Funding in the amount of $65,000 passed unanimously. 
• An ordinance appropriating $880,425 from the 2026 General Fund Budget to realize additional grant revenue received by the PA Election Integrity Grant had its first reading. 
• A resolution approving the lease agreement with Lawrence Park Township for office space located at 4230 Iroquois Ave. passed unanimously. 
• A resolution waiving the purchasing code for a parcel was amended. Both the amendment and the resolution passed unanimously. 
• Two possible sales of parcels from the Repository for Unsold Property passed unanimously.