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Williamsport City County Finance Committee reviewed a resolution this week authorizing creation of a small business and nonprofit grant program, with the city allotting $1 million in grants to various applicants.
Mayor Derek Slaughter said this has been in the works for some time and was initially discussed by the city economic revitalization committee. He brought in Jack Reagan, a manager with UHY, the consulting firm working with the city on compliance with American Rescue Plan funds, to explain the program.
The application for the grant program, if approved by council, would be on the city website and other locations.
UHY will not decide who is awarded the grants but will be the initial filter to ensure compliance. The decision will be made by the administration and council.
The purpose is to give a to-be-selected window of time, such as 30 to 60 days or 45 to 90 days, to allow any businesses or nonprofits time to complete the application.
Typically, Reagan noted, about a third to half of applications come in late.
UHY will be a facilitator to resolve with the applicants any incomplete applications.
The time window is so that individuals who miss the deadline are not given preference over those who met the deadline and to ensure the system is not a race to the front of the queue and all applicants are treated fairly.
Councilwoman Liz Miele, committee chairwoman, noted the business portion of the program requires a 50% match while the nonprofit does not.
The city has allotted $1 million for the grant program and will wait to see what applications come in.
A scoring structure will be established to give justification why a business or nonprofit was awarded a grant.
"We have scoring rubrics," Reagan said.
To clarify, it will not be a UHY decision on grant awards.
"We do not vote," Reagan said. The firm will present information to the committee such as whether the application is complete, meets eligible criteria and is eligible under ARPA.
It will be up to the council to vote up or down, he said.
UHY will ensure the committee does not waste time on applications that are not eligible under the federal program guidelines.
The vote by council is expected to take place on Thursday, based on the council agenda.