Greene County legislators approved a slate of resolutions on Dec. 3 that authorize mental-health and emergency-services contracts, grant applications and cultural-fund awards — while several members pressed for more detailed budget presentations for recurring increases.

The Health Services committee carried a resolution authorizing an agreement between Greene County Mental Health and 24th Street Psychiatry PC, a change driven in part by the announced retirement of Dr. McGinn and Dr. Corbin’s agreement to increase hours and assume medical-director responsibilities necessary for the county clinic’s licensing.

The legislature attested to the use of a targeted inflationary increase (TII) for Community Services and authorized a grant application to the New York State Department of Health AIDS Institute (HIV and Hepatitis Healthcare & Epidemiology). A separate contract (Resolution 306) with Greene County Emergency Medical Systems, Inc. to serve the town of Halcot was carried despite one recorded opposition.

Committee members approved numerous cultural and educational agreements — including payments to the Columbia-Greene Community College Foundation, an agreement with the Greene County Agricultural Society, Cornell Cooperative Extension contracts, and Greene County Cultural Fund awards — and asked staff to provide a list of recipients and project descriptions for transparency.

A point of contention arose over a proposed $50,000 increase to Community Action of Greene County Inc. Several legislators asked for a budget presentation to explain how the extra funds would be used and warned that repeatedly funding increases without oversight risks creating an expectation of permanent support. "Tell us what they'll be doing with that extra $50,000," one legislator said; others suggested having Community Action present its budget to the committee.

Members also debated awards to local historical organizations. The record shows the Mountaintop Historical Society requested $25,000 to enhance its tourism role but was allocated $15,000; the Greene County Historical Society received $5,000. Legislators asked the Mountaintop group to present details on the multi-year project and warned against creating long-term dependencies on county funds without clear deliverables.

Why it matters: The approvals move forward contracts and grant applications that fund mental-health care, emergency services and cultural programs across Greene County. Several members used the floor to press for greater fiscal transparency and periodic reporting from recipients before approving recurring increases.

Next steps: Staff agreed to provide reports listing cultural-fund recipients and to invite organizations (Community Action, historical societies) to explain program budgets and anticipated outcomes at a future committee meeting.