"We actually have no idea what we’re voting on.”

A resolution to spend ARPA funds did not list the entity getting the grant.

I debated writing a whole post about this, but it perfectly illustrates a recurring theme of this Substack—and my work as a Monroe County Legislator: the lack of detail provided to lawmakers before we’re asked to vote on multi-million-dollar expenditures.

At last night’s meeting, we were asked to approve more than $3 million in ARPA funding for a handful of housing projects. That sounds great in theory. But take a look at the descriptions attached to the resolution:

That’s it. That’s all we got.

One entry was especially confusing: a $789,250 award to something called Rochester Roots. There is no housing nonprofit in New York State by that name. The math didn’t add up unless there was other funding involved.

Out of frustration, before the Ways and Means Committee vote a couple weeks ago, I asked to review the application that had been submitted for this grant. This is quite inconvenient, as legislators have to make an appointment to view these applications in person. We aren’t allowed to photograph the documents or take copies with us.

I found what I was looking for on the very first page of the Rochester Roots application. The proposal was actually submitted by the Rochester Land Bank as part of an $11.3 million plan to build 20 houses in the JOSANA neighborhood. Rochester Roots is just the name of the project. They asked the County for $1.25 million, but we’re giving them $789,250.

I’m extremely supportive of using ARPA dollars to invest in housing projects by credible organizations and did vote yes. But we shouldn’t have to go on a scavenger hunt to understand how public money is being spent. These resolutions are the public record of legislative activity. The public should not have to watch every meeting—and legislators should not have to track down original applications—to get answers to obvious questions. Questions like: What entity is actually getting the money? What is the total project scope and cost and how much is the county kicking in? Those answers should be in the transmittal letter and/or the resolution.

When explaining my vote, I said, “We actually have no idea what we’re voting on.” Check out my floor speech here:

Keep in mind, we already had an ARPA scandal in which a quarter-million dollars disappeared. In my analysis of what happened,¹ I pointed to a rushed approval process with minimal information as one of the key reasons that particular project failed. And here we are again, being asked to approve millions in ARPA funds with precious little detail.

In the same meeting, I put on the record that the design contracts we approved for the County Clerk’s Office Renovation and the MCC Downtown Campus Career Center represent just a fraction of what those projects will actually cost. I wrote about this issue recently. The resolutions gave no indication of the total project budgets or what the selected firms are ultimately expected to receive. That information should be right there, in writing, for legislators and the public alike.

This isn’t just on the Bello administration. It’s also on the Legislature. We have a responsibility to assert our right to more information upfront—not just for our own due diligence, but for the public’s right to understand how their money is being spent.

1. If only I had this Substack when I was unwinding that mess!