N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. tit. 17 § 980.7

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 50, December 11, 2024

Section 980.7 - Responsibilities of grantees

(a) Responsibilities for planning, implementation and oversight. County government grantees of program financial assistance shall have the following responsibilities and obligations for the planning and implementation of coordinated services:

(1) Provide oversight and management of the State grant and grant expenditures through the designation of a grant manager who is an employee of the county government or a public transportation authority and who is capable and in a position to provide such oversight;

(2) Provide, through specific appropriations in adopted county budgets, the county funds required by this Part as the local share and forward copies of same to the Department upon request;

(3) Services coordinator. Designate, by resolution, and engage the services of the County's Services Coordinator as required by this Part and in accordance with Department guidelines for same; if the Coordinator is not a county or public transportation authority employee, the county shall enter into a formal contract with the Coordinator and that contract must be approved by the Department. A rural county may terminate the services of its Services Coordinator at any time, following established county procedures for same, or may change its designation of a Services Coordinator at any time in accordance with this Part. The County's Service Coordinator shall be responsible for the preparation of, and the initial steps leading to implementation of, the county's coordinated public transportation service plan. The party selected may be an individual, authority, agency, consultant firm or corporation. If the party designated is an agency, authority or corporation, it is important that responsibility for the actual preparation of the plan document be clearly assigned to one person, who is also named. The Services Coordinator must be an individual who can fairly and equitably address the needs of all transportation disadvantaged persons and the general public, without giving preference to any one population sub-group or clientele. The Coordinator should be a competent and neutral party who can develop a close working relationship with a variety of agencies and transportation providers, sometimes having differing objectives or concerns.

(4) Enter into a grant agreement with the State and fulfill the terms of that Agreement;

(5) Encourage local agencies and transportation providers to participate in the county's coordinated service program to the maximum extent feasible;

(6) Appoint a local citizens advisory committee representing a cross-section of the county's population to advise the county throughout development, implementation and operation of its coordinated public transportation service plan. The committee shall consist solely of local citizens and local agency or provider representatives; employees of State or federal agencies shall not be committee members. Advisory committee membership shall be in accordance with Department guidelines. The county's Services Coordinator may chair the committee;

(7) Cause its designated Services Coordinator to request, from public and private agencies receiving federal, state or local aid in that county, such information or data related to transportation services, facilities, equipment, usage, costs, revenues and funds as he or she may deem necessary for the preparation, revision, updating and implementation of the county's coordinated public transportation service plan.

(8) Cause its Services Coordinator to prepare a draft county public transportation service plan in accordance with Department guidelines and forward a copy of such plan to the Department for review. Following any modifications of the draft plan based upon the Department's review, conduct a formal public hearing on the draft plan; such hearing shall be conducted with a minimum of ten days notice and in accordance with Department guidelines, to maximize the opportunity for transportation disadvantaged persons and the general public to attend and state their views;

(9) Following modification of the draft county plan by its Services Coordinator based on comments received at the public hearing, formally adopt the plan by resolution of the county's governing body and submit it to the Department for approval;

(10) Establish a process, as part of its draft plan, for choosing its Coordinated Service Operator (CSO) and designate its CSO following that process, in accordance with section 980.8 of this Part;

(11) Take administrative or other procedural steps to direct, to the county's coordinated service operator, county human service agency program funds that are in whole or in part currently being used to provide passenger transportation services; such re-directed funds may be counted towards the county's required share of program operating assistance;

(12) Upon completion of the grant work, prepare and submit to the Department, a certified, auditable financial statement for the grant, certified by the chief executive or financial officer of the County or by an independent accounting firm, identifying actual grant costs incurred, State funds received, State funds expended or encumbered and county funds expended. Such certified financial statement shall be submitted on forms, and in accordance with instructions, provided by the Department, and is subject to audit by the State;

(13) Continue to provide policy and administrative oversight of its coordinated public transportation service on a sustained basis, throughout the planning, implementation and operational phases of its program;

(14) Provide, or cause its contractors to provide, periodic reports which evaluate the performance, effectiveness and efficiency of its transportation service, in accordance with Department guidelines;

(b) Termination of grantee responsibilities. A rural county's grant activities in its coordinated public transportation service program may be terminated at any time upon written notice of same to the Department by its chief elected official. If so, the county shall return to the Department any unexpended State grant funds paid to the county together with the certified financial statement in compliance with this Part.

N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 17 § 980.7