(WHTM) -- A former Pennsylvania city administrator was charged with misusing over $500,000 in funds that were supposed to be used for public transportation projects, the Pennsylvania Attorney General announced Tuesday.

William Nichols, 72, of Williamsport, was charged with felony counts of theft and tampering with records for misuse of state and federal funding, according to court records filed in Dauphin County Magisterial District Judge Matthew Pianka's office. He was charged Tuesday morning and waived his preliminary hearing.

Nichols was the Williamsport City Administrator and part of his role was to oversee the funding for the River Valley Transit, a public transit authority, according to a news release.

Nichols is accused of improperly diverting the money to other projects that were not for transportation. The AG says some of the money was used to fund a non-profit organization where he was a board member.

None of the money was used for Nichols' personal need, the AG says.

“The defendant was a dedicated public servant in the Williamsport community for over 40 years, but at a point, he decided to criminally misappropriate funds and manipulate the oversight process,” Attorney General Henry said in a statement. “The defendant was well aware these funds were for a very specific purpose and he chose to ignore that.”

Nichols was released on his own recognizance and he is scheduled to be formally arraigned on Nov. 8.