Allegheny County will need a new fiscal watchdog when Controller Corey O’Connor departs to become Pittsburgh’s next mayor.
O’Connor, who won election Tuesday, will be sworn in to the city’s highest office in January. Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro will select his replacement.
Shapiro’s choice must be confirmed by the Republican-controlled state Senate.
In the interim, according to Shapiro’s staff, under state law, O’Connor’s deputy would run the controller’s office.
In 2022, O’Connor was appointed controller by then-Gov. Tom Wolf and approved by the Senate when Chelsa Wagner was elected as an Allegheny County Common Pleas judge.
O’Connor won election to a full term in November 2023.
O’Connor — a former city councilman and the son of the late Mayor Bob O’Connor — has used his platform as county controller to warn of “unsustainable” financial challenges.
Under O’Connor, an audit by his office of the county’s Department of Human Services revealed that hundreds of homeless people were stuck on waiting lists for transitional housing, even as dozens of housing units sat empty.
Another recent audit flagged long wait times and inefficiencies for people seeking mental and behavioral health services.
In addition to performing fiscal oversight of the county, the controller also serves on the Allegheny County Retirement Board, Investment Board, Jail Oversight Board, and Juvenile Detention Board of Advisors.
