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Grand County panel unanimously backs EMS training program as RCOG grant candidate
Summary
At a May 7 meeting, the Grand County Boards and Commissions voted to recommend the EMS training/destination-education project as the county's candidate for the competitive state RCOG grant. Board members cited workforce benefits, scalability and the project's multiplier effect; Deborah McKee (Governor's Office) offered application support.
A Grand County advisory board voted May 7 to recommend the county's EMS emergency-services training and destination-education program as its submission for the state's competitive RCOG grant.
The recommendation came after a straw-poll and discussion of candidate projects; Jasmine Duncan moved to recommend EMS and a second was recorded. Multiple members voiced "Aye," and the chair declared the recommendation unanimous. Board members said EMS best fits the board's goal of choosing a project that both advances workforce development and creates a multiplier effect for local businesses.
Why this matters: The RCOG (state competitive) award is expected to be harder to win this year because there is less money at the state level, the chair said, so the county wanted a project that would stand out. The board also must prepare a separate set of RCG (county-funded) recommendations totaling $200,000. Deborah McKee, outreach manager at the Governor's Office for Economic Opportunity, told the board that the governor's office will help counties strengthen applications.
Supporters said EMS has several features that make it competitive. Ashley Kornblatt said the project would "promote the reputation of Moab" as a training destination, draw visitors who would spend on lodging and food, and provide local services. Another member highlighted the project's scalability, noting it could start small and expand. Melody McCandless, a Grand County commissioner, urged selecting projects that drive sales tax revenue; she said, "As of last night, I heard that we're down 12% our last quarter for sales tax revenue over last year," a factor the board said influenced their priorities.
Application next steps: Board members said they will work with county staff and GOEO to write a stronger application if the commission approves forwarding the recommendation. Deborah McKee offered GOEO support for application preparation. The board will present its recommendation to the county commission for formal approval and proceed with application work on the RCOG timeline.
The board also discussed, but did not finalize, how to allocate the county's RCG funds; that conversation will continue at the board's regular May meeting.
