The head of the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity -- which is overseeing millions of dollars in federal stimulus funds -- resigned Friday without publicly giving a reason.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The head of the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity -- which is overseeing millions of dollars in federal stimulus funds -- resigned Friday without publicly giving a reason.
Director Ed Harper submitted his resignation letter to Gov. Joe Manchin on Friday morning, Manchin spokesman Matt Turner confirmed. Harper's letter didn't give a reason for his resignation.
"From what I understand, it was a very simple letter," Turner said.
Manchin appointed Harper to the post about four years ago, Turner said. The office is intended to fight poverty.
Turner said he could not comment further because the resignation was a personnel matter. He would not say whether the administration asked Harper to resign.
Programs director Kelly Davis will serve as acting director of the office, Turner said.
Harper, who is also a pastor, did not return messages the Sunday Gazette-Mail left on his cell and home phones.
The GOEO handles federal funds that are passed on to West Virginia's 16 "community action" agencies. Those agencies help weatherize homes, run literacy and employment-training programs, and care for elderly and disabled people, among other services.
Harper's resignation came two days after a meeting where the heads of several community action agencies told Harper they might close their doors because federal stimulus funds that pass through the GOEO were so late.
West Virginia has received nearly $38 million in stimulus funds for weatherization, meant to help make elderly and low-income West Virginians' homes more energy efficient with improvements such as insulation and better windows.
Rick Smith, executive director of the Eastern West Virginia Community Action Agency in Moorefield, said many of the community action agencies had been getting weatherization payments late from GOEO.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The head of the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity -- which is overseeing millions of dollars in federal stimulus funds -- resigned Friday without publicly giving a reason.
Director Ed Harper submitted his resignation letter to Gov. Joe Manchin on Friday morning, Manchin spokesman Matt Turner confirmed. Harper's letter didn't give a reason for his resignation.
"From what I understand, it was a very simple letter," Turner said.
Manchin appointed Harper to the post about four years ago, Turner said. The office is intended to fight poverty.
Turner said he could not comment further because the resignation was a personnel matter. He would not say whether the administration asked Harper to resign.
Programs director Kelly Davis will serve as acting director of the office, Turner said.
Harper, who is also a pastor, did not return messages the Sunday Gazette-Mail left on his cell and home phones.
The GOEO handles federal funds that are passed on to West Virginia's 16 "community action" agencies. Those agencies help weatherize homes, run literacy and employment-training programs, and care for elderly and disabled people, among other services.
Harper's resignation came two days after a meeting where the heads of several community action agencies told Harper they might close their doors because federal stimulus funds that pass through the GOEO were so late.
West Virginia has received nearly $38 million in stimulus funds for weatherization, meant to help make elderly and low-income West Virginians' homes more energy efficient with improvements such as insulation and better windows.
Rick Smith, executive director of the Eastern West Virginia Community Action Agency in Moorefield, said many of the community action agencies had been getting weatherization payments late from GOEO.
An increased workload and the federal stimulus act's complex reporting requirements contributed to the delay in payments, he said.
"Until the [stimulus funds] surfaced, the turnaround time was usually phenomenal," he said. Now, "I've got vendors who have cut off our line of credit."
On Wednesday, Harper and the GOEO staff held a regularly scheduled quarterly meeting in Charleston, attended by community-action agency administrators and others, Smith said.
The situation came to a head at the meeting, he said. Smith and another agency's executive director said they were in danger of closing their agency's doors Friday. The payments were so late that they worried they wouldn't be able to pay employees, Smith said.
Representatives of the inspector general offices of both the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Energy also attended the meeting, Smith said.
"They were there to give us a training ... and unfortunately got caught in the middle," Smith said.
Reach Alison Knezevich at alis...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1240.
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I take it as the "rats" abandoning the Manchin sinking ship ! But never forget this, their state pensions have been "enhanced" because of theses Manchin appointments from the beginning to the end. And probably with a life-time health care plan also.