KRS 96.905: Regional Development Agency Assistance Program -- Grants for

economic development and job creation activities -- Annual reports --

Certification of proper use of funds.

(1) A Regional Development Agency Assistance Program is established to consist

of a system of grants to agencies designated by fiscal courts of counties

designated in KRS 96.895. Grants shall be administered by the Department for

Local Government.

(2) (a) Grants obtained under this program shall be used for:

1. Economic development and job creation activities;

2. Acquiring federal, state, or private matching funds to the extent

possible; and

3. Debt service for approved projects;

that the agency is empowered to undertake in that county.

(b) Grants obtained under this program shall not be used for:

1. Salaries;

2. Consulting fees; or

3. Operational expenses.

(3) Applications for grants from funds provided for in KRS 96.895 shall:

(a) Be made by the legislative bodies of one (1) or more counties entitled to

receive money from the regional development agency assistance fund;

(b) Include any recipient agency as a co-applicant on the application; and

(c) Include a concurrence letter from each legislative body entitled to receive

money.

(4) The Department for Local Government shall review and approve grant

applications from counties for agencies that operate in, or serve the interest of,

the county whose fiscal court designated it to receive funding. Multiple counties

may also submit a joint application requesting that part of their allotted funds be

directed to an agency for a project that affects the counties.

(5) By October 1 of each year, the commissioner of the Department for Local

Government shall provide, in writing, to each the Governor and the Legislative

Research Commission a listing of all applications for grants received pursuant

to this section since the last report, a listing of all grants awarded, the amount

of the award, the recipient agency, and the related project.

(6) The Department for Local Government shall require that any funds granted

under this section include an agreement that the recipient agency shall certify

that the funds were expended for the purpose intended. The department shall

determine whether the certification should be an independent annual audit or

an internal certification, taking into account the size of the agency and the

financial burden an independent annual audit may impose on the agency. In

the case of an independent annual audit, the audit report shall include a

certification that the funds were expended for the purpose intended. A copy of

the audit or certification of compliance shall be forwarded to the Department for

Local Government within eighteen (18) months after the end of the fiscal year.