Warren County to act as fiduciary for regional hazmat grant, will buy 21 training suits

Warren County approved a resolution to amend the 2025 budget to accept fiscal year 2024 hazardous materials emergency preparedness grant funds and to cover the required local match, county staff said.

Staff described the grant as $16,000, with a required 20% local match. Seven counties are participating in the consortium; the project purchases three training suits for each county (21 suits total). The total project cost is $20,000: $16,000 from the grant and $4,000 in combined county matches. Warren County will serve as the fiduciary for this year, paying the $4,000 match up front and billing the other counties $571.43 each to recover their shares, the staff member said.

"Each county will get three suits; they will pick them up and the suits will remain on the county inventory so we know where they are," the staff member said. A board member asked whether the suits are for training only; staff confirmed they are for training use and not field use.

A motion to bring the amendment to the floor was made and seconded; the board approved the budget amendment by voice vote. The staff member also noted an intelligence liaison conference in April that is related to state Homeland Security grant requirements, and that approximately 35% of certain grant funds go to law enforcement activities, as part of grant administration discussion.

The budget amendment will fund the purchase and set the county's fiduciary responsibilities for collection of the match from partner counties.