Cultural groups getting scrutinized for how they spend Erie County grant money

It found some troubling expenditures.

Those findings include the possibility that grant money is being used for alcohol purchases and personal expenses, that organizations cannot clearly identify what operational costs are covered by the grants, and that some purchases are being made without any oversight, particularly if they involve debit card use.

“We pride ourselves on spending a significant amount of county resources on cultural organizations,” said Comptroller Kevin Hardwick. “These expenses have benefited our community immensely, but I think a review of those expenditures has been long overdue. I’m proud of the work our Audit Division is performing.”

The Comptroller’s Office began a systematic review of cultural organizations for the first time after getting complaints about how particular organizations were using their money. Audit staff subsequently decided to review spending of any cultural organization that received $5,000 or more in county grant money from 2020 through early 2023. Of that group of about 80 organizations, the Comptroller’s Office has finished reviewing nine so far.

The bulk of the rest of the reviews should be completed within the next couple of years.

For a majority of the groups, the Comptroller’s Office’s findings were relatively minor, and best practices were recommended to improve record-keeping and accountability.

But both the General Pulaski Association, which has received $71,000 since 2020, and the Buffalo Inner City Ballet, which has received $109,000 since 2020, had findings that were more serious.

Benjamin Swanekamp, chief of staff for County Executive Mark Poloncarz, said that, in light of the Comptroller’s Office findings, the administration will be making changes to the requirements for…