Sponsor Statement for CS SSSB 28(CRA)

Unincorporated Community Matching Grants

The purpose of the capital project matching grant program is to:

1. provide a capital project funding system that is equitable to municipal-ities and unincorporated communities throughout the state;
2. enhance the role of communities in initiating and prioritizing the construction of capital projects;
3. encourage a sense of local ownership in capital projects by requiring local participation; and
4. improve the process for making grants for capital projects by providing a more orderly and thoughtful planning process that involves the local community, the executive branch, and the legislature.

SB 28 revises the Unincorporated Community Capital Project Matching Grant Program by:

• Expanding the program to include unincorporated communities within boroughs and unified municipalities
• Changing the grant amount from an automatic minimum of $25,000 per year to a maximum of $25,000 per year, based on approved projects;
• Requiring borough assembly approval of an unincorporated community's nonprofit entity and its list of requested project;
• Revising the timeline of grants from automatically receiving funds and then applying for grants to first applying for a grant and then receiving funds for approved projects; and
• Maintaining local share requirements of 5 percent for unincorporated communities in the unorganized borough but requiring that unincorporated communities within boroughs provide the same local share percentage as their borough; and
• Changing the time in which unexpended and unobligated funds are spent from five years to four years.

SB 28: 2/17/98: mj

Sponsor Statement for SB 28

Unincorporated Community Matching Grants

The purpose of the capital project matching grant program is to:

(1) provide a capital project funding system that is equitable to municipal-ities and unincorporated communities throughout the state;

(2) enhance the role of communities in initiating and prioritizing the construction of capital projects;

(3) encourage a sense of local ownership in capital projects by requiring local participation; and

(4) improve the process for making grants for capital projects by providing a more orderly and thoughtful planning process that involves the local community, the executive branch, and the legislature.

SB 28 revises the Unincorporated Community Capital Project Matching Grant Program by:

• Expanding the program to include unincorporated communities within boroughs and unified municipalities
• Changing the grant amount from an automatic minimum of $25,000 per year to a maximum of $25,000 per year, based on approved projects;
• Requiring borough assembly approval of an unincorporated community's nonprofit entity and its list of requested project;
• Revising the timeline of grants from automatically receiving funds and then applying for grants to first applying for grants and then receiving funds for approved projects; and
• Maintaining local share requirements of 5 percent for unincorporated communities in the unorganized borough but requiring that unincorporated communities within boroughs provide the same local share percentage as their borough; and
• Changing the time in which unexpended and unobligated funds are spent from five years to four years.

SB 28: 1/31/97: mj