Congresswoman's staff: Sunman project accepted for FY27 at roughly 80% of request

Buckle Grim, a staff member from Congresswoman Aaron Couch's office, told the Sunman Town Council that the congresswoman has accepted the town's community project at roughly 80% of the requested amount, which the presenter described as "the 3,700,000 and some change." Grim said the acceptance moves the project to subcommittee markup in Congress and that the town will be notified if and how much federal funding the subcommittee places on the project.

Grim warned that the next steps are procedural and timing-dependent. "Once we have kind of word on as the legislation moves through the markup process and we know how much is on the table, we will, of course, be in touch with you all," Grim said. He explained applicants must be prepared to "obligate all the funds" within the grant's required window and said a continuing resolution or delayed budget could shorten that obligation window.

Council members thanked staff and residents for letters of support and asked about the drawdown and obligation timeline. Grim described two possible outcomes: the project is funded and the administering agency (he cited the EPA as the likely agency) will contact the town to begin drawdown and post-award steps; or Congress fails to pass a budget and projects face delays or must be re-submitted. He encouraged town staff to be ready to obligate funds and said the congresswoman's office will provide further guidance as the bill advances.