Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 9, September, 2024
Saline County Regional Solid Waste Management District
Rule establishing a Recycling Fund Distribution and District
Administered Grants Program within the Saline County Regional Solid Waste
Management District and establishing procedures for the administration and
conduct of the Recycling Fund Distribution and District Administered Grants
Program
As Approved by the Board of the Saline County Regional Solid
Waste Management District by its Resolution No. 1 of 2019 on February 27,
2109.
RECYCLING FUND DISTRIBUTION AND DISTRICT ADMINISTERED GRANTS
PROGRAM
Introduction
Act 1333 of 2013 eliminated the Recycling Grant Program under the
Solid Waste Management and Recycling Fund Act administered by the Arkansas
Department of Environmental Quality ("ADEQ") and provided that these funds
("Act 1333 funds") be distributed to and administered by the several Regional
Solid Waste Management Districts. The Saline County Regional Solid Waste
Management District Board (the "Board") has adopted the requirements set out
herein ("this Rule") to establish policy and procedure (the "SCRSWMD Grant
Program") for all grants made and administrated by the Saline County Regional
Solid Waste Management District (the "District"). This Rule shall not apply to
grants made and administered by ADEQ other than Act 1333 funds.
Eligibility for Grant
Funding
Funds disbursed to the District as part of the Act 1333 funds and
other funds of the District which have been authorized by motion of the Board
to be used to make grants to eligible entities and for eligible purposes (the
"Grant Funds") shall be administered by the District subject to the
requirements set out in this Rule.
1.
Eligible Entities: The following entities are considered
eligible to receive grant funds:
a.
Cities and Counties: Duly incorporated cities and towns and
county governments of the State of Arkansas located within the geographic
boundaries of the District.
b.
Subordinate Service Districts: Subordinate Service Districts
which are formed pursuant to Ark. Code Ann. §§
14-14-708
et seq., and are empowered to administer a grant award
pursuant to the provisions of Ark. Code Ann. §§
8-6-601
et
seq.
c.
Multi-Regional Projects: The District may provide grant
funding for projects which include the District and other Regional Solid Waste
Management Districts provided that concurrent resolutions regarding the joint
application have been adopted by the participating Regional Solid Waste
Management District Boards and that a joint application is signed by the Board
Chairman for each Regional Solid Waste Management District.
d.
Partnerships Between Public
Entities and Private Recycling Interests: Public entities identified
herein partnered with private recycling interests to provide recycling
services, provided that the public entity maintains ownership of facilities and
equipment purchased with grant funds and that the public entity assumes
responsibility for meeting the requirements of this Rule.
e.
Supporting Organizations.
Those organizations with facilities located within the District which provide
programs and volunteers which advance the District's efforts to educate the
public on the value of solid waste management and recycling programs within the
District.
f.
District: The District itself may expend Grant Funds for any
eligible activity, project or program conducted directly by the District upon
approval by the Board by motion.
2.
Eligible Activities, Projects, and
Programs: The following activities, projects, or programs, in addition
to other activities that support the objectives of increasing and improving
recycling as a waste-management strategy, consistent with the intent of Ark.
Code Ann. §§
8-6-601
et
seq., are eligible for grant funding:
a.
Solid Waste Planning:
Planning studies are eligible for funding if an applicant's proposed study
meets the solid waste planning requirements of Ark. Code Ann. §§
8-6-201
et
seq., §§
8-6-1901
et
seq., Arkansas Pollution Control and Ecology Commission Regulation 22:
Solid Waste Management, and the Minimum Requirements
for Regional Solid Waste Management District Plans as set forth in the
Statewide Solid Waste Management Plan. The funded planning study must include
goals for the diversion of recyclable materials from disposal at landfills or
incinerators and must set out methods for increasing recycling in the study
area. Only first-year costs for planning staff are eligible.
b.
Recycling or Composting Equipment
and Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs): Recycling equipment and
recycling facilities are eligible for funding if existing facilities and
equipment do not provide adequate and efficient service for the project area.
The facilities must meet the objectives of the solid waste management plan for
recycling facilities. Composting facilities and equipment are also eligible.
Equipment is to be used no less than fifty percent (50%) of the time on
recycling activities or other grant-funded projects. Applicants shall provide
information that reasonably demonstrates that existing mechanical processing
equipment or facilities are not serving or could not serve the relevant area.
The applicant must describe in detail the equipment to be purchased and explain
why the applicant has concluded that such equipment is not available in the
private sector.
c.
Solid
Waste Education and Public Awareness Programs: Education and public
awareness activities and materials are eligible if, in accordance with the
legislative intent of Ark. Code Ann. §§
8-6-601
et
seq., they are part of a plan for introducing or promoting recycling,
composting, or other solid waste management practices that divert wastes from
landfills, encourage waste reduction and stimulate demand for products produced
from recycled materials.
d.
Assistance to Supporting Organizations. Supporting
Organizations are eligible for direct assistance funding for solid waste
disposal and management.
e.
Transfer Stations: Waste transfer stations which accept three
(3) or more recyclable materials, as identified in DPC&E Regulation 28, are
eligible for funding.
f.
Recycling Programs: Recycling activities that meet the intent
and requirements of Ark. Code Ann. §§
8-6-601
et
seq. are eligible for funding.
g.
Waste Reduction
Activities: Other waste stream reduction activities that divert the
flow of materials away from landfills to be put to beneficial use are eligible
for funding.
h.
Recycling
System Activities: Activities that support and are an integral part of
a recycling system, including without limitation, operation, construction, and
logistical systems, are eligible for funding.
Existing Equipment or Facilities: Grant
assistance shall not be provided for purchasing mechanical processing equipment
or facilities if existing mechanical processing equipment or facilities
efficiently and adequately serve the relevant area, unless the Board determines
that the equipment or facility is an indispensable component to the otherwise
eligible project and would more efficiently serve the relevant area.
Responsibilities of the Executive Director
and Board
1.
Executive Director: The Executive Director of the District
shall be the primary administrator of the SCRSWMD Grant Program. The Executive
Director or their appointee shall:
a.
Promulgate such forms as the Executive Director may determine to be necessary
or convenient for grant application and reporting required of grant
recipients.
b. Review all grant
applications submitted under this SCRSWMD Grant Program.
i. Ensure that all projects recommended for
approval by the Board for SCRSWMD Grant Program funding are compatible with the
most-current approved District Solid Waste Management plan or that there is
documentation to demonstrate why a deviation is necessary.
ii. Ensure that the grantee shows that
adequate revenues are projected to support the long-term operation and
maintenance of a grant-funded project, and that the proposed projects are
reasonably feasible.
c.
Recommend to the Board approval or disapproval of all grant applications
including any request for modification submitted to the Executive
Director.
d. Oversee the
distribution of grant funds for all grant projects as scheduled in the grant
application and oversee the grantee's compliance with all grant conditions.
i. Funds shall not be disbursed prior to the
start of the project.
ii. Ensure
that the applicant has obtained all applicable federal, state, and local
permits and licenses prior to disbursement of funds.
iii. Ensure that all applicants conform to
all state laws that are applicable to the purchase, use or sale of equipment
and facilities secured with state funding including, but not limited to, state
laws on commodity purchases and bids for construction by local
governments.
iv. Ensure that
facilities or equipment purchased with Grant Program funds are to be used no
less than fifty percent (50%) of the time on recycling activities or other
grant-funded projects as specified in the grant application. Facilities or
equipment purchased with grant funds shall not be sold, traded, or transferred
except for the purpose of upgrading recycling facilities or improving recycling
programs within the District, and then only with the District's written
consent.
e. Receive and
review all reports made by recipients of grant funds and recommend to the Board
approval or disapproval of such reports and any action indicated by such
reports.
f. Conduct such
inspections of the records and operations of grant recipients as the Executive
Director may deem necessary and recommend to the Board any action indicated by
the findings of such inspections.
2.
Board: The Board shall by
motion approve or disapprove all applications for expenditure of Grant Funds
giving due regard to the recommendation of the Executive Director.
a.
Administrative
Allocation: The Board may authorize a reasonable portion of the Act
1333 funds distributed to the District to be used by the District to defray the
costs of administering the Grant Program. For the purposes of this Rule,
administrative expenses of the Grant Program are expenses for the
administration of the District's solid waste management plan and may include
record keeping, periodic reporting requirements, budgeting, and other related
activities.
b.
Examples of
Administrative Allocations: Examples of administrative expenses
include the salaries and fringe benefits of the Executive Director and other
staff supporting the administration of the plan (including accounting, payroll
and human resources, information technology, legal, and procurement functions);
the cost of supplies and equipment used for administrative functions or
activities; rent, utilities, phone service, postage, and licenses associated
with the administrative office of the District; and other reasonably related
expenditures approved by the Board.
Reporting and Oversight
Requirements
1.
Record Keeping: All grantees shall maintain an accurate
accounting system to document that grant expenditures are made in accordance
with the project budget.
2.
Reporting: The documentation approving each grant shall
include a reporting schedule approved by the Executive Director.
a. Until all grant funds have been
distributed for a project, the grantee shall report to the District according
to the approved reporting schedule in detail regarding the progress of the
project compared to the schedule set forth in the grant application.
b. The grantee shall additionally furnish an
expense itemization for the grant award. An expense itemization is a listing of
expenditures that includes expenditure date, item purchased, purchase price,
and name of vendor. When equipment is purchased, grantees shall submit copies
of invoices, purchase orders, checks, or other supporting documents to the
District with progress reports. These documents should include serial numbers,
vehicle identification numbers or other identifiers, and physical location of
the equipment. Grantees shall provide copies of invoices, purchase orders,
checks, or other supporting documents for grant expenditures to the District
where they shall be public records subject to public disclosure under the
Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.
3.
Record Retention; District
Access: For a period of five (5) years after a grant recipient's last
receipt of grant funds, the grantee shall maintain complete records of the
project subject to inspection by the District. District personnel shall have
the right of entry during normal business hours, unless otherwise deemed
necessary by the Executive Director to enter at extraordinary times, to the
premises of a grant-funded facility and the right of access to all records
pertaining to a grant-funded project or activity.
General Grant
Conditions
1.
Modifications: After the District has approved a grant,
modifications may be made to the grant project if the grantee submits adequate
documentation of the proposed changes and receives approval by the
Board.
2.
Termination of a
Grant for Cause: A grant may be terminated by the Board if the Board
determines that the grantee is unable or unwilling to complete or meet the
conditions of the grant as set forth in the grant application or has failed to
meet any material condition of the grant. If a grant is terminated, grant funds
shall be reimbursed in accordance with this Rule. Funds returned shall become
part of the Grant Funds.
3.
Funds Forfeited: If, within a three-year period beginning on
the date that the District awards a grant, the grantee does not meet the
conditions of the grant prescribed under this Rule, the District may order the
grantee to reimburse the grant award plus interest moneys earned from the
holding of grant funds by grant recipient. If the grantee fails to meet the
conditions in the first year after the grant award, the grantee may be required
to reimburse one hundred percent (100%) of the grant. If the grantee fails to
meet the conditions in the second year of the grant award, the grantee may be
required to reimburse sixty-six percent (66%) of the grant. If the grantee
fails to meet the conditions in the third year after the grant award, the
grantee may be required to reimburse thirty-three percent (33%) of the
grant.
4.
Earned Interest
on Grant Awards: Interest moneys earned from the holding of grant
funds by grant recipients shall be used exclusively for the purposes approved
in the grant. It shall be the responsibility of grantees to monitor the
collection of earned interest and direct interest moneys to the project
supported by the grant award.
