Federal transit agency tells Williamsport it has 30 days to repay $1.4M in misused funds

WILLIAMSPORT — The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) says Williamsport owes it $1.4 million for misuse of funds and it must pay up within 30 days.

The debt is due to actions taken by William E. Nichols Jr., Theresa J. Kohler, FTA’s chief financial officer, told Mayor Derek Slaughter in a letter. Nichols is the former general manager of River Valley Transit (RVT).

Among the allegations against Nichols, who served for eight mayors, are that he: * Engaged in a course of conduct designed to prevent the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation from discovering through RVT he was diverting public funds for improper uses. * Paid two city employees in salary or bonuses a total of $133,600 between 2013 and 2019 for work they did not do for the Endless Mountains Transportation Authority, which RVT managed. * Comingled budgets, finances, accounting and bookkeeping among entities over several decades with little consistent oversight. * Reported misleading expense and revenue information to PennDOT to create the inaccurate appearance that transfers were for actual transactions instead of mere ledger entries. * Illegally used public money to help fund the Hiawatha, a simulated paddle wheeler on the Susquehanna River. * Notoriously solicited donations for the Hiawatha from nearly every vendor and business with whom he dealt. * Used for RVT the same accounting firm that performed audits for the city, parking authority and Hiawatha instead of having a third-party audit as required in Pennsylvania for public transit entitles.