KABS Gets OK For Grant Application; Eagle Scout Recognized
May 11, 2022 at 12:35 a.m.
KABS Gets OK For Grant Application; Eagle Scout Recognized
By David [email protected]
Chad Kaltenbach, Kosciusko Area Bus Service general manager, told the Commissioners he and Cardinal Services Executive Director Matt Boren were before them Tuesday to present their 2023 Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) grant application and KABS’ quarterly claim.
The quarterly claim, Kaltenbach said, is for Jan. 1 to March 31 and is “100% operating assistance and represents $154,740 in federal funds. No PTMF or state funds to claim.”
The Commissioners approved the quarterly claim.
Boren said Kaltenbach is a month into his new position as general manager, having taken over for Tony Peterson, and the annual INDOT grant application for KABS is due which can be “kind of a beast” with a lot of work that goes into it “especially as we go from CARES Act funds and the changes and the 100% federal back to ‘normal.’”
The grant application does have $340,117 in federal funds, which needs a 50% match by the state and the locally derived income (LDI), so the state portion is $135,443.
“So the total is just at $680,000, but we do have some CARES Act funding that will run into 2023,” Boren said, so about $46,000 will be used up in the first quarter. “That will be 100% federal match, and then that will end it and we’ll get back to the 50% match kind of model.”
He said the total operating expense their predicting for KABS for 2023 is around $727,000.
Boren requested the Commissioners approve the INDOT grant application, which they unanimously did.
Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Shane Bucher requested permission to apply for two grants, which the Commissioners OK’d.
The first is a COPS Hiring Grant for $250,000 from the U.S. Department of Justice. It is a federal reimbursement grant.
“This grant allows the Sheriff’s Department to seek help to reduce our costs on adding new deputies to the Sheriff’s Office,” Bucher said.
He said they’ve requested permission from the wage committee to hire more manpower and the grant, if received, may be a way to help offset the costs on that.
“This grant, if it’s awarded, will cover up to 75% of the entry-level salary and benefits for each approved position for the three-year period of the funding. The county would be requested to cover a minimum of 25% of the cost of new officers. The maximum amount per officer allowed is $125,000 over a three-year period and then the county would have to cover the fourth year for that officer,” Bucher explained.
The second application is for a Kosciusko REMC Operation Round-Up grant for $4,986 through the Kosciusko County Community Foundation. Bucher said the reimbursement grant would be used to purchase two dry suits for the dive team along with the gear that goes with the dry suits.
Emergency Management Agency Director Ed Rock requested permission to apply for a grant for a maximum amount of $150,000 from the 2022 State Homeland Security Program.
“It must tie to the nexus of terrorism, I believe is the term they use, which we can accomplish that, especially when you look at the fact that a lot of this is probably going to go toward cybersecurity,” Rock said.
It is a reimburseable grant.
The Commissioners unanimously approved the grant application.
The Eagle Scout the Commissioner recognized was Zachary Harris. Commissioner Bob Conley, reading a statement, said, in part, “Becoming an Eagle Scout is an outstanding achievement. This honor demonstrates you’re a hard-working young man with good character. You should be proud of this accomplishment.” They presented him with a framed certificate for completing all requirements to achieve.
In other business, the Commissioners:
• Approved the $5,000 Indiana Cancer Consortium grant, as requested by County Administrator Marsha McSherry.
• Approved a quote from D & D Electric for $66,141 to install a capacitor in the Justice Building, as requested by McSherry.
“We’ve noticed a higher-than-normal usage and increases in our electrical bill in the Justice Building so I had a company come in and they monitored our usage over a period of time and found that our demand charges were pretty high. We tracked our invoices for these type of things, and over the past year, we found that we were paying $90,000 in demand charges,” she said.
The other quote for the installation of a capacitor was from The Dillon Group for $149,480.
“What this equipment will do will monitor the usage and bring those down,” McSherry said.
The estimated savings in a year’s time will be about 80%, she said, recommending the quote from D & D Electric. The lead time on the equipment from both vendors was about nine to 12 weeks.
• Heard program updates from the Purdue Extension Office
• Announced the next Commissioners meeting is at 9 a.m. May 24.
Chad Kaltenbach, Kosciusko Area Bus Service general manager, told the Commissioners he and Cardinal Services Executive Director Matt Boren were before them Tuesday to present their 2023 Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) grant application and KABS’ quarterly claim.
The quarterly claim, Kaltenbach said, is for Jan. 1 to March 31 and is “100% operating assistance and represents $154,740 in federal funds. No PTMF or state funds to claim.”
The Commissioners approved the quarterly claim.
Boren said Kaltenbach is a month into his new position as general manager, having taken over for Tony Peterson, and the annual INDOT grant application for KABS is due which can be “kind of a beast” with a lot of work that goes into it “especially as we go from CARES Act funds and the changes and the 100% federal back to ‘normal.’”
The grant application does have $340,117 in federal funds, which needs a 50% match by the state and the locally derived income (LDI), so the state portion is $135,443.
“So the total is just at $680,000, but we do have some CARES Act funding that will run into 2023,” Boren said, so about $46,000 will be used up in the first quarter. “That will be 100% federal match, and then that will end it and we’ll get back to the 50% match kind of model.”
He said the total operating expense their predicting for KABS for 2023 is around $727,000.
Boren requested the Commissioners approve the INDOT grant application, which they unanimously did.
Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Shane Bucher requested permission to apply for two grants, which the Commissioners OK’d.
The first is a COPS Hiring Grant for $250,000 from the U.S. Department of Justice. It is a federal reimbursement grant.
“This grant allows the Sheriff’s Department to seek help to reduce our costs on adding new deputies to the Sheriff’s Office,” Bucher said.
He said they’ve requested permission from the wage committee to hire more manpower and the grant, if received, may be a way to help offset the costs on that.
“This grant, if it’s awarded, will cover up to 75% of the entry-level salary and benefits for each approved position for the three-year period of the funding. The county would be requested to cover a minimum of 25% of the cost of new officers. The maximum amount per officer allowed is $125,000 over a three-year period and then the county would have to cover the fourth year for that officer,” Bucher explained.
The second application is for a Kosciusko REMC Operation Round-Up grant for $4,986 through the Kosciusko County Community Foundation. Bucher said the reimbursement grant would be used to purchase two dry suits for the dive team along with the gear that goes with the dry suits.
Emergency Management Agency Director Ed Rock requested permission to apply for a grant for a maximum amount of $150,000 from the 2022 State Homeland Security Program.
“It must tie to the nexus of terrorism, I believe is the term they use, which we can accomplish that, especially when you look at the fact that a lot of this is probably going to go toward cybersecurity,” Rock said.
It is a reimburseable grant.
The Commissioners unanimously approved the grant application.
The Eagle Scout the Commissioner recognized was Zachary Harris. Commissioner Bob Conley, reading a statement, said, in part, “Becoming an Eagle Scout is an outstanding achievement. This honor demonstrates you’re a hard-working young man with good character. You should be proud of this accomplishment.” They presented him with a framed certificate for completing all requirements to achieve.
In other business, the Commissioners:
• Approved the $5,000 Indiana Cancer Consortium grant, as requested by County Administrator Marsha McSherry.
• Approved a quote from D & D Electric for $66,141 to install a capacitor in the Justice Building, as requested by McSherry.
“We’ve noticed a higher-than-normal usage and increases in our electrical bill in the Justice Building so I had a company come in and they monitored our usage over a period of time and found that our demand charges were pretty high. We tracked our invoices for these type of things, and over the past year, we found that we were paying $90,000 in demand charges,” she said.
The other quote for the installation of a capacitor was from The Dillon Group for $149,480.
“What this equipment will do will monitor the usage and bring those down,” McSherry said.
The estimated savings in a year’s time will be about 80%, she said, recommending the quote from D & D Electric. The lead time on the equipment from both vendors was about nine to 12 weeks.
• Heard program updates from the Purdue Extension Office
• Announced the next Commissioners meeting is at 9 a.m. May 24.
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