Section 498-16-1 - PROGRAM OVERVIEWA. CDBG OBJECTIVES The Maine CDBG Program serves as a catalyst for local governments to implement programs which:
1. benefit low and moderate income persons;2. are part of a long range community strategy;3. improve deteriorated residential and business districts and local economic conditions;4. provide the conditions and incentives for further public and private investment; and5. foster partnerships between groups of municipalities, state and federal entities, multi-jurisdictional organizations and the private sector to address common community and economic development problems.B. METHOD OF DISTRIBUTION The DECD, through the Office of Community Development (OCD), offers programs allowing municipalities to achieve their community development objectives. The 1997 Program Statement provides a description of the selection criteria that OCD will use to allocate CDBG funds among communities. Programs are grouped under three broad categories: Community Development, Economic Development and Planning.
1. Community Development a. Housing Assistance Grantsb. Public Facilities/Infrastructure Grantsd. Downtown Revitalization Program2. Economic Developmentb. Regional Assistance Fundd. Economic Development Infrastructure Grantse. Business Assistance Programf. Interim Finance Program3. Planning a. Phase II Planning Grantsb. Community Planning GrantsC. STATE ADMINISTRATION 1. General Administration Allocation: Pursuant to Section 106(d) (3) (A) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended, the DECD will utilize $100,000 plus 2% of its allotment from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to administer Maine's Small Cities CDBG Program in accordance with Federal, State and local requirements.2. Technical Assistance Administration Allocation: Pursuant to Section 106(d) (5) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended, DECD will utilize 1% of its allotment from HUD to provide technical assistance to local governments and nonprofit program recipients.D. EXCLUSION OF ENTITLEMENT COMMUNITIES The entitlement communities of Auburn, Bangor, Lewiston and Portland are not eligible to receive State CDBG program funds.
E. PROGRAM TIMEFRAME Application deadlines are listed below.
| Housing Assistance | January 31, 1997 |
| Economic Development Infrastructure | February 21, 1997 |
| May 9, 1997 |
| July 18, 1997 |
| Business Assistance Program | Open |
| Public Facilities/Infrastructure | February 28, 1997 |
| Micro-Loan | March 21, 1997 |
| Downtown Revitalization Program | February 28, 1997 |
| Community Planning | April 11, 1997 |
| Public Service | April 25, 1997 |
| Urgent Need | 1st come basis beginning March 1, 1997 |
| Development Fund | Monthly |
| Regional Assistance Fund | Open |
| Interim Finance Program | Open |
F. PROGRAM BUDGET The program budget indicates how CDBG Funds will be allocated for the 1997 grant year. The amount of the 1997 federal allocation is projected to be $16,561,000. The amount available for each program is indicated in the following budget.
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM BUDGET GRANT YEAR 1997
| Projected FY 1997 CDBG Program Budget | $16,561,000 |
| Administration | 431,220 |
| Technical Assistance Administration | 165,610 |
| Regional Council Technical Assistance | 200,000 |
| 1. Housing Assistance Grants | 2,400,000 |
| 2. Public Facilities/Infrastructure Grants |
| Category 1 | 3,600,000 |
| Category 2 | 1,000,000 |
| Category 3 | 100,000 |
| 3. Public Service Grants | 300,000 |
| 4. Urgent Need Grants | 250,000 |
| 5. Downtown Revitalization Grants | 800,000 |
| 6. Development Fund1 | 464,170 |
| 7. Regional Assistance Fund | 1,000,000 |
| 8. Micro Loan Program | 450,000 |
| 9. Economic Development Infrastructure Program | 3,550,000 |
| 10. Interim Finance Program |
| 11. Business Assistance Grants | 1,600,000 |
| 12. Phase II Planning Grants | 100,000 |
| 13. Community Planning Grants | 150,000 |
1 Development Fund program income projected to be $650,000.
G. THRESHOLD CRITERIA AND REGULATIONS FOR THE CDBG PROGRAM 1. The following state and federal regulations APPLY TO ALL PROGRAMS: Federal and State Certifications for Local Governments:
All communities applying for CDBG funds must certify that they will:
(i) minimize displacement and adhere to a locally adopted displacement policy in compliance with Section 104(d) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended;(ii) take action to affirmatively further fair housing and comply with the provisions of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968;(iii) not attempt to recover certain capital costs of improvements funded in part with CDBG funds;(iv) establish a community development plan;(v) meet all required State and Federal public participation requirements;(vi) comply with the Federal requirements of Section 319 of Public Law 101-122 regarding government-wide restriction on lobbying;(vii) with the exception of administrative or personnel costs, verify that no person who is an employee, agent, consultant, officer, or elected official or appointed official of State or local government or of any designated public agencies, or subrecipients which are receiving CDBG funding may obtain a financial interest or benefit, have an interest in or benefit from the activity, or have an interest in any contract, subcontract or agreement with respect to CDBG activities;(viii) review the project proposed in the application to be sure that it complies with the community's comprehensive plan and/or applicable state and local land use requirements.2. The following general requirements APPLY TO ALL PROGRAMS:(a) Prohibition on Multiple Grants: Except for the Development Fund (DF) and Regional Assistance Fund (RAF) programs, units of local government and unorganized territories may not apply for or benefit from more than one grant per program per grant year.(b) Prohibition on Subsequent Year Award: Except for the Development Fund (DF) Program, Economic Development Infrastructure Program and the Public Facilities Infrastructure Program category #1, units of local government and unorganized territories that benefited from a 1996 award or a two year 1995 award may not apply again in that specific program until the 1998 program.(c) Computation of Distress Scores for Multi-Jurisdictional Applications: Distress scores for multi-jurisdictional applications will be computed on a weighted average basis. (population 1)(distress 1)+(population 2)(distress 2)+... / population 1 + population 2 +... = weighted average distress score.
(d) Phase II Planning Grants: Phase II participants may be eligible for planning grant funds on an as needed basis to assist with payment of project development costs. Extent of assistance shall be determined by OCD staff.(e) Grant Termination: The OCD may terminate a community's grant if progress on the project is not apparent within 6 months from the date of contract signing.(f) Project Eligibility: Applications will be reviewed to determine eligibility of activities the applicant proposes to undertake with CDBG funds. Those activities must be included in the list of eligible activities under the "special threshold criteria and certifications" section for the respective program being applied for and be eligible under Section 105(a) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended. If the application contains an ineligible activity the application will not be considered for funding. The applicant will be notified in writing of the determination made by the OCD.(g) Project Benefit: Applications will be reviewed to verify that the proposed activities meet one of the CDBG Program national objectives pursuant to Section 104(b) 3 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended. If the activity does not meet a national objective the application will not be considered for funding. The applicant will be notified in writing of the determination made by the OCD.3. The following Threshold Criteria APPLY ONLY TO THE FOLLOWING PROGRAMS: * Housing Assistance (HA)
* Economic Development Infrastructure (EDI)
* Public Facilities Infrastructure (PFIG)
* Community Planning Grant (CPG)
* Public Service Grant (PSG)
* Micro Loan (ML)
* Business Assistance (BA)
* Downtown Revitalization (DR)
(a) Eligible Applicants: All units of general local government in Maine, including plantations, are eligible to apply for and receive CDBG funds. County governments may apply on behalf of unorganized territories. Counties may make more than one application per program, but only on behalf of different unorganized territories. Groups of local governments may apply for multi-jurisdictional or joint projects. These multi-jurisdictional applications require designation of one local government as the lead applicant and consent for that designation by each participating local government.(b) Phase II Project Development:(i) Invitation to Proceed: Applicants will be placed in rank order from highest to lowest according to the scores determined by the scoring team. Scores will be determined by: (all scores - lowest score) / (all scorers - 1) plus distress scores. Starting at the top of the scoring list, applicants will be invited to proceed to Phase II. While an invitation into Phase II is not a guarantee of funding, if successful, communities will receive the amount necessary to complete their project, up to the maximum grant award for that program until the funding available in that program is exhausted. Phase II project development includes: (aa) Project Planning: Details of the project including pre-engineering, inspections, cost analysis, feasibility and/or market studies.(bb) Management Plan: Details of the structure and methods established by the community for program management.(cc) Regulations: Phase II applications will be reviewed for compliance with State and Federal regulations.(dd) Project Eligibility: Verification that proposed activities are eligible pursuant to Section 1. G. (2) (f) of the Program Statement.(ee) Project Benefit: Verification that proposed activities meet one of the CDBG Program national objectives.(c) Approval Process: The emphasis during Phase II will be to finalize project development. The goal is to develop a local-regional-State partnership that will facilitate project development to best meet the community's identified needs, and is in accordance with State goals. An OCD Project Development Specialist will be assigned to work closely with each community to finalize their project. Successful completion of Phase II criteria will allow the applicant to contract with DECD and become eligible to receive CDBG funds. Communities not completing their Phase II application within six months of receiving a Phase II invitation will forfeit their grant award. The Director of OCD may waive this requirement in light of extenuating circumstances. Project implementation shall begin upon execution of a contract. All activities must be cleared through an environmental review process prior to obligating CDBG funds. OCD staff will remain involved with the community throughout project implementation.
19- 498 C.M.R. ch. 16, § 1