Although the state passed the 2025-26 budget last week, the Lycoming-Clinton Joinder Board approved payment deferments for bank loans and to vendors in an effort to play catch-up as the funding from the state begins to return.

Meeting this week at Lock Haven, the board ratified deferring payments to Woodlands Bank on the lines of credit they had established with the banking institution.

“(With) the budget impasse we have both MH/ID (Mental Health/Intellectual Development)and Children and Youth have lines of credit out with Woodlands Bank,” said Keith Wagner, executive director.

“We reached out to them in the last month and inquired if we could defer payment on the line until after the budget was ratified and they agreed to do that but they did ask that you all take a vote on that here and sign a document indicating that was just a temporary deferment (and) that we would resume paying in January,” Wagner explained.

During the budget impasse, the Joinder had added $2 million to its line of credit with the bank in order to assure the continued delivery of services.

Also in response to the budget impasse, Wagner said that the Joinder looked at options to “reduce or hang on to cash for a longer period of time,” which resulted in the decision to temporarily reduce business hours by a half hour a day, with staff working 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. rather than 4:30 p.m.

“This obviously has an impact on staff hours,” he said.

Two other agenda items also addressed the consequences of the budget impasse.

The board approved contract amendments with Horizon Federal Credit Union and ServiceMaster Commercial Services which would allow a three month suspension of payments for their services.

The Joinder rents parking lot space from the credit union and ServiceMaster provides janitorial services for the Joinder’s Third Street Plaza offices. The Joinder had reached out to both during the budget impasse to seek a suspension of payments until the budget was passed.

“They agreed to a three-month suspension which will give us time to get the money flowing in from the state and then we can go back and pay them,” Wagner said.

When asked if the Joinder would take the three months to pay it, or if the payment would be all at once, Wagner replied, “If the money comes in, and we can. We have a whole lot of things that we have not been paying that we need to pay off, so we’re trying to map that out so we could potentially pay it sooner if all of the money comes in.”

“But this gives us the flexibility of up to three months,” he added.

In other actions, the board approved renewal agreements with: Megan Maculen for speech therapy and IFSP (Individualized Family Service Plan) teaming at a rate of $34.70 per hour; Actuarial Solutions, LLC for actuarial services at a cost of $55,950; The Center for Behavioral Health Data Research, Inc. for consumer family satisfaction team services at a cost of $71,975; Deerfield Data Management, LLC,for the provision of Health Choices data at a cost of $30,429; Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel LLP, for solicitor services at a rate of $325 per hour; and West Branch Drug & Alcohol Abuse Commission to provide collaborative consulting services, not to exceed $5,000.

The board also approved a performance bond for HealthChoices insolvency protection with Allianz Indemnity.

The next meeting of the board will be at 1 p.m., Dec. 17, in the Joinder Office, fourth floor Third Street Plaza, 33 W. Third St.