Millions of tax dollars subsidize questionable programs or organizations across the state at the whim of the Ridge administration and legislative leaders, a bipartisan oversight committee charged Tuesday.

The Legislative Budget and Finance Committee said the Community Revitalization Program is not competitive, lacks oversight and is used for political purposes.

Sen. Clarence Bell of Media, Delaware County, committee chairman, said the grant program is a "hush-hush" process controlled by House and Senate leaders in collaboration with Gov. Tom Ridge.

For instance, Bell said he was allotted $175,000 in grants from the Department of Community and Economic Development. He conceded the grants were not based on competition or need.

"I got my funds because I'm a senator. Period," said Bell, the senate's senior Republican.

David Black, Ridge's deputy secretary, disputed the committee's conclusions and said 13 of its recommendations to improve the grant process are being studied.

"The recommendations are the key," Black said. "That's what we're focusing on. They really didn't find any serious problems with anything. We will work through these recommendations. We think some of them are very good."

Auditor General Robert Casey Jr. last year reached the same conclusion as the committee did yesterday. Casey found no evidence of competition for grants despite claims to the contrary.

The committee's analysts compared the community revitalization program with how the state monitors federally funded grant programs.

For example, Community Development Block Grant and Weatherization programs had "appropriate monitoring requirements and compliance with those requirements was good," the committee reported.

The extremely popular community revitalization program generated $282 million in applications last year for $35 million in grants. There was no way to compare the merit of rejected applications because the state refused to release the documents.

A Tribune-Review computer analysis found need was not a requirement for getting grants.

The Valley Forge Military Academy, an upscale prep school, received a $15,000 grant to install a sewer line, according to records.

Ross Township in Allegheny County received $2.4 million to build a community park on a former slag pile.

Another $300,000 was awarded to the Pennsylvania Snowmobile Association to plan a statewide trail network and buy a grooming machine.

Murrysville, Westmoreland County's wealthiest community, received $300,000 to buy land for a park and fund its library, youth sports and community groups.

Sen. Gerald LaValle of Rochester, Beaver County, said $26 million was requested for community revitalization grants, but Ridge allotted $45 million.

"That tells you they juiced it up pretty good," LaValle said. "The program is nothing more than a continuation of the WAM program. The only difference is there's more money."

The former WAM system, or Walking Around Money used for lawmakers' pet projects, was outlawed by the courts and replaced by community revitalization grants in 1996.

A key complaint of yesterday's report was the failure to monitor the grants.

"All state-funded programs require grant recipients to submit final fiscal reports or audits at the end of the contract period," the committee's report said. "However, we found often these reports and audits, which are key to assuring the proper use of state funds, were missing from the files."

The committee reviewed 55 grants and found that only one file contained the required audit.

One reason lawmakers covet the grants is because of the political goodwill they generate among voters, particularly at re-election time.

The report found the grants are timed to give legislators the best possible political advantage by "coordinating the award letters with press releases and other public relations efforts."

"Members of the General Assembly are always interested when grants come into their district," Black said. "We try to be accommodating."