Tillamook County commissioners on May 28 approved a revised personal services agreement with Global Grant Services to continue providing grant management support on a more limited, as-needed basis.

Chief Administrative Officer Rachel Hegarty described two years of contracting with Global Grant Services under ARPA funding. Hegarty said the retainer model — which billed whether weekly meetings occurred or not — had yielded limited net awards (about $50,000 in grants received to date, with others pending), and county departments sometimes lacked capacity to collaborate on solicitations.

Under the new arrangement the county will retain Global Grant Services under a $59,000 ceiling personal services agreement available to multiple departments; only $10,000 in ARPA general-fund support was included in the budget to pay for on-demand support for general fund projects. Departments that use the firm for specific solicitations will be billed to their own special revenue funds where appropriate. Hegarty said the revised model is intended to focus grant services on projects where county staff can invest time and promote better outcomes.

Commissioners discussed departmental ability to pay for grant writing (noting emergency management’s tight budget) and the possibility of an RFP in the future. The board approved the agreement by voice vote.