Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato is sticking to his vow to withhold nearly $28 million in funding to the Port Authority even if it forces the transit agency to shut down.

Without a more competitive labor agreement, the Port Authority eventually will run out of money with or without the $27.7 million, Mr. Onorato told members of the Pittsburgh Airport Area Chamber of Commerce yesterday. The only question is when.

The $27.7 million, raised through county drink and car rental taxes, is the local match for $184.5 million in state funds.

"If I release that money today and nothing changes, the Port Authority shuts down next year," he said in a meeting with reporters afterwards. "That's the story everybody's missing. We need to fix it long term."

Mr. Onorato said that given the terms of the union's expired contract, under which it is still working, there's a "good possibility" that bus and trolley service could grind to a halt before the end of the year.

He maintained that a fact-finder's recommendations, accepted by the authority's board but rejected by the leadership of Local 85, Amalgamated Transit Union, would have been a "fair deal, not a perfect deal" and would have put the agency on better financial footing.

But Patrick McMahon, Local 85 president and business agent, has said the recommendations would have "set our members back 50 years" through diminished health care, retirement, and pension benefits gained over years. He could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Mr. Onorato saw it differently. He said he didn't implement the unpopular drink and car rental taxes to provide dedicated funding for transit "just to give it to the Port Authority to watch them go broke in 12 months."

"Management gave something back. Ridership, we increased fares. The county, by me pushing, we got dedicated funding. The union representatives have got to come to the table. They've got to come to the table and be part of the solution."

The union and Port Authority officials have continued to negotiate in the aftermath of the fact-finder's report. Mr. McMahon has said that the union understands the financial issues involved but would not "negotiate out of fear" of a possible shutdown.

Meanwhile, county Councilman Charles McCullough, R-Upper St. Clair, told chamber members he would propose legislation next week that would force the Port Authority into a Chapter 9 bankruptcy reorganization that would allow labor terms and other costs to be reworked while the agency continues to operate.

Mr. McCullough said the bankruptcy would be a way to cut costs "without putting bus riders at risk."

However, such a move not only would require County Council approval but the backing of the state Legislature. The Port Authority had no comment.