§ 73-J — Special provisions relating to aid

§ 73-j. Special provisions relating to aid. 1. Within one hundred\ntwenty days after the adoption of a state budget containing an\nappropriation implementing this article, the commissioner shall send to\nthe county executive, if any, or the chairperson of the county\nlegislative body of each rural county, a copy of this article and\ngeneral information relating to the procedure to be followed to obtain\nthe aid provided for in this article including, but not limited to, the\nfollowing:\n a. the intent of the program;\n b. program guidelines, including the time when applications must be\nsubmitted; the time when applications will be accepted or rejected; the\ntime when the applicant must complete the program for which aid has been\ngiven;\n c. potential county benefit, including an indication of the level of\nthe funds to which each county would be entitled should it participate\nin the program as defined in this article.\n 2. The failure to file an application for aid in any year shall not\nimpair the right of a rural county to file an application for aid in any\nsubsequent year.\n 3. Within six months of the time of receipt of any application for\naid, pursuant to section seventy-three-g of this article, the\ncommissioner shall notify the applicant that such application was\napproved and aid shall be paid to such county or the commissioner will\nreject such application and state the reasons for such rejection. The\nrejection shall not disqualify an applicant from resubmitting an\napplication for aid. In the event, after consultation with the\ncommissioner, the application is modified it may thereafter be\nresubmitted for further consideration.\n 4. Each request submitted to the commissioner for a financial\nassistance grant under this article shall be accompanied by an itemized\npreliminary budget, certified by the chief financial officer of the\ncounty, identifying expected eligible costs, amounts and sources of\ngrant funding including any applicable county matching funds.\n a. Within sixty days after the completion of the grant, as determined\nby the terms of the grant, the chief executive officer of the county, if\nany, or the chairperson of the county legislative body shall forward to\nthe commissioner a certified financial statement identifying actual\ncosts incurred, grant funds expended or encumbered, including any\napplicable county matching funds on forms provided by the commissioner.\nAfter the expenditure of any applicable county matching funds, should\nany state funds paid to a county remain unexpended or unencumbered upon\ncompletion of the grant, as determined by the terms of the grant, the\ncommissioner will credit said state funds to the county's planning or\noperating assistance grant for the subsequent year. In no event, shall\nthe county's subsequent year's grant exceed the sum of forty-five\nthousand dollars for planning or twenty-five thousand dollars for\noperating aid.\n b. Should a county's activities in coordinated public transportation\nservices be terminated at any time, the chief executive officer of the\ncounty, if any, or the chairperson of the county legislative body shall\nadvise the commissioner of such termination in writing and return to the\ncommissioner any unexpended state funds paid to the county together with\nthe final certified financial statement indicating the expenditure of\nany grant funds received.\n 5. Except as provided for in section seventy-three-g of this article,\nany moneys paid to rural counties by the commissioner shall be paid in\nquarterly installments at the beginning of each quarter, commencing on\nthe first day of January of each year, unless the commissioner approves\nan alternative method of payment in accordance with subdivision nine of\nthis section.\n 6. Except as provided for in section seventy-three-g of this article,\na rural county's apportionment of funds made available in accordance\nwith this article may be used for capital, operating and or\nadministrative assistance to provide rural public transportation. The\ncommissioner, in consultation with the interagency coordinating\ncommittee on rural public transportation, may award other grants for\noperating and capital expenses.\n 7. Recipients of aid shall annually submit to the commissioner such\ndata as he or she may deem necessary to review the program and to\nrecommend future funding levels.\n 8. Following formal adoption of a rural county's coordinated public\ntransportation service plan and approval of that plan by the\ncommissioner, and upon receipt of written notice from a rural county\nthat its coordinated public transportation service is about to commence\nin accordance with such approved plan, the commissioner shall forward\noperating aid applications to the chief executive officer of the county,\nif any, or the chairperson of the county legislative body, along with\ninstructions and a timetable for their completion. The commissioner\nshall advise the applicant county of his action on each such application\nwithin ninety days of its receipt.\n 9. Funds appropriated for the purpose of implementation of this\narticle may be allocated in whole or in part to a rural county prior to\nthe time actual expenditures are incurred if the payment is first\napproved by the commissioner. Applications for advance payment shall be\nmade by the county in accordance with rules of the commissioner. Each\napplication shall specifically state why such advance payment is\nrequired.\n 10. The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations in order\nto implement the provisions of this article.\n 11. When a rural county has adopted and implemented a coordinated\npublic transportation service plan in accordance with rules and\nregulations issued by the commissioner pursuant to the provisions of\nthis article and such plan has been approved by the commissioner, then\nthe department may, from among all applications within said county for\nfinancial aid to purchase vehicles provided by section sixteen (b) (two)\nof the federal Urban Mass Transportation Act of nineteen hundred\nsixty-four as amended, give priority consideration for funding to those\napplications that provide coordinated public transportation service in\naccordance with the county's plan.\n 12. When included and operated as an integral part of a coordinated\npublic transportation service plan approved by the commissioner and\nadopted pursuant to the provisions of this article, and consistent with\nthe Urban Mass Transportation Act of nineteen hundred sixty-four as\namended, vehicles obtained through section sixteen (b) (two) of said\nfederal Urban Mass Transportation Act, may be eligible to carry persons\nother than elderly and disabled on a regular basis, provided that the\ntransportation needs of elderly and/or disabled persons described in the\nrecipient's original section sixteen (b) (two) grant application are met\nby the adopted coordinated public transportation service and the\ntransportation needs of other elderly and disabled persons in the rural\ncounty are met under the county's adopted plan.\n 13. Public transportation providers utilizing state or federal transit\nassistance moneys for the purchase of vehicles pursuant to this article,\nmay purchase said vehicles through state contract or by public bid as\nrequired by section one hundred three of the general municipal law.\n 14. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article to the\ncontrary, no application for financial assistance made pursuant to\nsection seventy-three-g of this article shall be awarded by the\ncommissioner for less than fifty-five thousand dollars or for less than\nthe amount requested unless the commissioner shall, in writing, prior to\nmaking the award, each year certify the reasons why such applicant was\nawarded less than fifty-five thousand dollars or an amount less than\nrequested. Such certification, including the reasons for such action,\nshall be sent to the applicant, the interagency coordinating committee\non rural public transportation, the secretary of the senate finance\ncommittee, the secretary of the assembly ways and means committee, the\ndirector of the office of rural affairs and the director of the\nlegislative commission on the development of rural resources.\n 15. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article to the\ncontrary, no grant for operating aid, as authorized by section\nseventy-three-h of this article, shall be made by the commissioner to\nany county for less than thirty-five thousand dollars in any one year\nunless the commissioner shall, in writing, prior to making the grant,\neach year certify the reasons why such county was awarded less than\nthirty-five thousand dollars. Such certification including the reasons\nfor such action shall be sent to such county, the interagency\ncoordinating committee on rural public transportation, the secretary of\nthe senate finance committee, the secretary of the assembly ways and\nmeans committee, the director of the office of rural affairs and the\ndirector of the legislative commission on the development of rural\nresources.\n