Local leaders once again are looking to taxpayers to foot the bill for chronic operating deficits at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

For the third straight year, the Pittsburgh-Allegheny County Sports & Exhibition Authority is requesting $2 million in Allegheny Regional Asset District funding to cover the shortfalls in 2009.

That request came even though the authority in July began receiving state gambling revenues intended to cover the deficit. But Executive Director Mary Conturo said those amounts fall short of what is needed.

The authority's latest bid for asset district funding, financed by the county's 1 percent sales tax, angered state Sen. Jim Ferlo, D-Highland Park, who said the $2 million for the convention center could shortchange arts and cultural groups that the regional asset district was set up to help.

Instead of throwing more money at the convention center, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and county Chief Executive Dan Onorato should be re-evaluating its operations and the oversight provided by the sports authority, he said.

"They keep putting fingers in the dike. When are they going to get to the core operations of the SEA and the convention center?" he asked.

"I hate to be so blunt. I fear, unfortunately, that if they go back there and get money, it's going to come at the expense of a lot of cultural and educational groups that are delineated in RAD funding."

He urged both to take money from VisitPittsburgh, the regional tourism agency, to cover the deficit. The agency, which Mr. Ferlo repeatedly has criticized as ineffective, is funded through the county's 7 percent hotel tax.

The city and the county first asked the asset district in 2006 for $2 million to cover the deficit. At the time, Mr. Onorato described it as a "temporary move" until gambling revenues statewide started flowing. Both made the same request last year for 2008, and now are back again.

Ms. Conturo said the money is needed because the state, in allocating the gambling revenue, changed the timetable and annual amount.

Instead of getting $2 million a year for 10 years to cover the convention center deficit, the sports authority will get $1.7 million a year over 12 years. In addition, the state, instead of providing a $20 million lump sum payment to pay off a loan used to cover a deficit and for other purposes, spread the allocations over 12 years, at the same $1.7 million annually.

The net effect, the authority said in its asset district application, is a shortfall of almost $1 million. At the same time, the agency has determined that it needs another $1 million annually for convention center maintenance, repair and replacement beyond what was budgeted.

Ms. Conturo defended the use of asset district money to cover the deficit, saying it is a regional asset like many of the other cultural and sports-related facilities, including Heinz Field and PNC Park, that receive funding.

"Because it wasn't part of the original list for funding, I don't know that it's fair to say that it's not a regional asset. I think it clearly meets the definition of a regional asset, which makes it eligible for funding," she said.

Asset district Executive Director David Donahoe said it was always intended that the county's hotel tax would be the source of convention center funding. Most of that money now is going to cover debt service on the $300 million center and to fund VisitPittsburgh.

"It was not ever assumed that [the convention center] would be one of the regional assets," Mr. Donahoe said.

One potential problem with funding it, he added, is that the asset district board used $6 million in reserves to finance an $83.4 million budget this year. If there's no growth in sales tax revenues next year, the board may have to use "substantial" reserves again to balance the spending plan.

As the surplus, currently about $16 million, dwindles, the board may be forced to prioritize who gets money and who doesn't, he said. For 2009, the board has requests from 107 applicants for $99.5 million, about $1 million more than a year ago.

Ms. Conturo said she couldn't predict whether the sports authority would be coming to the asset district every year for funding to cover the convention center deficit. But in reaction to Mr. Ferlo's comments, she said the center's losses have "stabilized" at $3.8 million a year.

She added that convention centers typically are "loss leaders" because they need to offer discounted or free rents in order to stay competitive with other cities. On the other hand, she said that from 2004 to 2007, the center brought $379 million in direct tourism spending to the region.

"Our objective is to maximize the usage of the building and minimize the deficit," she said.

She added that the request for the $2 million to cover the deficits comes as asset district funding for Mellon Arena improvement dropped from $3.2 million a year to less than $1 million. She said the authority is asking that the difference be reallocated to the convention center.

Mr. Donahoe said it is still too early to tell whether sales tax revenues in the county will increase or decrease next year. He said that through August, they are about even with last year, but he is expecting a dip before the end of the year.

As for 2009, "I think we can safely assume there will be no significant growth in revenue. If you look at the projections through the early parts of 2009, they're generally pessimistic about economic activity," he said.

The asset district board will begin public hearings on 2009 funding requests today.