Two weeks after the last state spending plan expired, lawmakers in Harrisburg are still locking horns over a new budget.

In the meantime, public officials around the state, including several in Mercer County, are trying to divine the financial future of state funded and subsidized programs. These programs affect everything from education to child care to drug and alcohol rehabilitation. Scores of government agencies are waiting in limbo to see what's happening in the state's capital.

Local governments are looking to generate revenue lost when the state canceled subsidies. School districts made their best guess as to how much money they would get from the state, and some programs, like the Mercer County Intermediate Punishment Program, found out they'd be getting much less -- up to 40 percent less -- than they'd originally counted on.

The IPP program diverts prisoners from serving time in the county jail, saving the county about $50 per day per person, and places them on house arrest. It also provides opportunities for drug and alcohol rehabilitation. Last year, Donald Fedorczyk, IPP coordinator, said the program saved the county from having to pay for more than 12,000 county jail days.

The program is funded by two state grants. This month, however, IPP was told to expect about a 40 percent cut in funding from the state.

"It's been difficult making the decisions of what to cut," Fedorczyk said.

Many of the program's subcontractors have been understanding of IPP's situation and have agreed to cut their costs and keep drug and alcohol programs running. Other shortfalls were made up from fees and fines paid by people on house arrest or who are otherwise using the county system.

"The state's put us in this position," Fedorczyk said, "Everyone's just trying to maintain their programs."

Municipal governments are being affected, as well.

Greenville borough manager Vance Oakes has been told not to expect a $66,000 sewer subsidy for the Greenville Sanitary Authority this year. The borough has been getting the subsidy since 1953.

"I can hope and pray at this point," Oakes said, "But I'm not expecting any miracles."

The reduction in funding means an almost guaranteed hike in sewer rates for Greenville residents, Oakes said.

"We haven't even started to investigate that yet," he said.

Mercer County schools don't know exactly how much money they'll see from the state.

Based on a proposal from Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell, Sharon City School District expects to get somewhere in the neighborhood of $11.6 million in state subsidies this year: a basic education subsidy for $10,398,400, special education subsidy for $1,238,000 and charter school funding at around $115,000, said James Wolf, business manager for the school district. Schools are expecting about a 2.8 percent increase over last year's numbers.

The proposed 2.8 percent public education funding increase doesn't sit too well with Wolf.

"The governor proposed so much, and then the Republicans tacked on additional 0.3 percent on top of that, like they could buy us out with that," he said. "What we need is money for full day kindergarten, money for preschool programs, money for reducing the size of classes. An extra $30,000 or $40,000 just isn't going to cut it. That's not the kind of money we need to be competitive."

Having the budget in the air affects planning for the next school year, he said.

"We're ready to transition to an all-day kindergarten in September," Wolf said. "But it's going to be awfully hard to do if we don't find out until the end of August that we're going to be able to do it."

The longer the delay "the more it's going to hurt public education," said Wolf, who blamed Republicans in Harrisburg for the impasse.

Not knowing when to expect state reimbursements could affect more than just planning.

The school district normally received subsidy payments of $1.8 million in July and August. If the budget isn't finalized until then, it will affect the school district's savings accounts and interest earnings.

"We'll have about $200,000 left in savings after we get through that period," Wolf said. "We'll be able to get through it, but September may be a little dicey."

August is one of the busiest tax collecting months, he said, which will also help.

"We know we're going to get money from the state," he said. "We just don't know when."

Greenville Area Leisure Services Association is also facing an uncertain fiscal situation with its already financially troubled Kids Korner day care program.

According to Erik S. Bielata, executive director of GALSA, about 60 percent of kids in day care are state subsidized.

The subsidies come from the department of Public Welfare, Bielata said, the same department that promised Mercer County Children and Youth Services department $200,000 in grants and then reneged on the deal after CYS had already spent the money.

Public Welfare has since guaranteed some, but not all, of the money for CYS.

Each month, Bielata said, GALSA gets a check from the state to pay for Title XX, or low-income working families assistance program. The check may come this month for May's expenses, Bielata said, or it could come in October.

"We never know," Bielata said, "if the check comes, great. If not, we'll just have to wait and see when it does."

So far, the state still owes GALSA between $1,500 and $2,000 for January. Usually, Title XX can owe GALSA $4,500 a month for the summer months.

Bielata hasn't heard if Public Welfare is going to have to cut money from the Title XX program.

"If they do, they'll have to notify the families whose children come here, because that's going to mean that much more money these families will have to pay for day care."

The budget problem could be resolved soon, said State Representative Michael C. Gruitza, Hermitage, D-7th District. The lawmaker said he and his colleagues are gearing up for a grueling week ahead to battle through the budget.

"We're being told to expect a long week next week," he said Friday. He said he expects the governor and legislative leaders are already working on reconciling differences between the budget the General Assembly passed and what the governor wants.

Those issues to be reconciled include a controversial question over whether or not to permit slot machines at race tracks and Rendell's ambitious education package.

Some of the budget was passed, Gruitza said, and has been in place, including the general operations budgets. But other portions, such as the education package and social services funding, are still being debated

"They're looking at trying to get back some of the underfunded programs that got cut," Gruitza said, such as the drug and alcohol programs, library funding and other county government programs. "We're trying to see if some of those underfunded areas could be backfilled," Gruitza said.

Rendell proposed a "bare bones" budget in March, Gruitza said, and the Republican-run legislature pushed a version of the budget through. The governor vetoed parts of the budget, namely the education portions, which leaves the situation pretty much where it stands today.

Until Rendell and the legislature figure out what the final spending plan will look like, however, county organizations and school districts across the state will just have to sit, wait and see how much -- or how little -- money is bound their way from Harrisburg.