Faced with competing city and county budgets for the G-20 Summit, Pittsburgh officials yesterday unified around a $19.5 million spending plan, that should allow the city to contract with out-of-town police agencies.

A day after Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato held dueling news conferences outlining different philosophies on how their governments will pay for the influx of world leaders and protesters, they suggested that there wouldn't be lasting disagreement.

"I think the mayor and I are in agreement now," said Mr. Onorato, after learning that Mr. Ravenstahl endorsed a 50-50 split of some grant funds. The city did "exactly what I suggested they do. I support their moves."

Mayor Luke Ravenstahl picked $3.5 million in expenses from a county wish list of around $8 million, including those most closely tied to public safety in a budget passed by city council, and said that the county would get $3 million in state and federal funds to cover them.

"Understand, the county may have a different perspective, but this is what we're comfortable spending on the G-20," Mr. Ravenstahl said, shortly after council approved the plan.

"Whatever they have done doesn't have an impact on our costs," said county spokesman Kevin Evanto. "If the city has decided to change its side of the budget, that's the city's business."

The city budget includes nearly $12 million to hire, feed, equip and insure some 3,100 out-of-town officers expected to provide backup for the bureau. Another $4 million would go for overtime and extra shifts -- plus equipment -- for city police, firefighters and paramedics.

City leaders culled the $3.5 million in county costs from a more expansive budget. They are primarily costs for county police, emergency operations, jail, sheriff and court personnel and equipment.

City leaders characterized it as an $18 million budget, because they subtracted out $1.4 million in police training costs, which the city will bear. They did not explain, though, how they could subtract out an expense that was not part of the $19.5 million list of costs, and City Controller Michael Lamb said the higher number is the more accurate total.

Around half of the cost -- $10 million -- will be reimbursed by the federal Department of Justice. The city also claims half of a $3.5 million state grant and a $2.5 million Department of Homeland Security grant, to be split with the county. A separate, $900,000 state grant comes to the city.

Mr. Ravenstahl said he thinks the city will have to spend between $1.1 million and $1.7 million of its capital money -- funding normally used for roads, bridges, playgrounds and community investment.

Mr. Ravenstahl said he had to pass a budget that roughly matched up with expected reimbursements, and the state and federal government made it clear that they would only pay enough to cover public safety.

"If you want to pave streets, if you want to do things at the airport, if you want to put signage up, that's your responsibility as local leaders on the county and city level," Mr. Ravenstahl said, paraphrasing officials from Washington and Harrisburg.

Mr. Evanto said the county is sticking by the $25 million budget the county and city initially submitted to the state and federal government.

"We can try and get reimbursed after the fact," said Mr. Onorato. His spokesman added that the county will diligently track expenditures for police, courts, jail and emergency services.

Appearing in the county budget, but stripped from the city version, is $4.15 million for apron rehabilitation, signs, security equipment and services, and personnel sought by the Airport Authority.

Authority spokeswoman Joanna Jenny said her agency already has slashed its initial request by 90 percent, to around $400,000, mostly for staff time and extra security.

She said the authority had originally hoped to prepare an apron for more plane parking -- for $2 million -- and put up electronic traffic and weather signs for another $1 million, but nixed those plans. The State Department hired contractors to provide equipment and services to the incoming delegates, taking another several hundred thousand dollars of costs off of the authority's ledger.

A city council that had vigorously questioned Mr. Ravenstahl's G-20 budgeting since Friday fell into lockstep after a series of huddles involving council members, the mayor, and Public Safety Director Michael Huss.

"I was delighted to see that [the mayor] came over to the [council] halls and talked with us," said Councilman Patrick Dowd, who abstained on tentative G-20 budget votes Friday, but voted yes yesterday.

The administration told members that without an approved budget, outside agencies would not commit to sending police.

"Every discussion that we had with any municipality," said Mr. Ravenstahl, "their first question was, 'How are we going to be paid?'"

Until yesterday, the city had no definitive answer. "They said, 'Well, call us back whenever you know how [we're] going to get paid.'"

"We understand that the city has to go and contract for police and that is why they need to budget for that," said Mr. Evanto. "But for us, it's going to be the actual expenditures that count because we have no way of estimating how many people may be locked up in the county jail or how many people will be processed through the courts."

Mr. Ravenstahl said he chose which county expenses to list in the city's budget without Mr. Onorato's input. He said he did not believe this would lead to a post-summit wrestling match on Grant Street over who gets the federal and state reimbursements.

Mr. Onorato said that yesterday, for the second straight day, he and Mr. Ravenstahl left voice mail messages for each other, but never connected.

"I have a feeling," said Mr. Lamb, "that this is more an issue of communication than a real dispute."