Guilford County just took a $100,000-hit since it turns out it won’t be getting some anticipated grant money meant to transport elderly people and people with disabilities.

However, the Guilford County Board of Commissioners is expected to replace that grant money with county money at the board’s next meeting on Thursday, Aug. 15.

The “Enhanced Mobility of Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities Grant,” included in Guilford County’s 2019-2020 budget, has been reduced from $202,000 to $102,710. Half of that is coming from federal grant money and the other half is from state grant money.

The grant is used to “fill in the gaps” when regular public transportation services fail to meet the needs of the elderly and disabled.

The full grant amount, $202,000, would have allowed Guilford County to provide about 6,500 trips for the elderly and disabled in the current fiscal year.

Guilford County Chairman of the Board of Commissioners Alan Branson said this reduction in grant money was “unexpected,” and he added that he wasn’t aware of the reason for the cut.

The commissioners are expected to vote to make up that shortfall. Information accompanying the agenda for the commissioner’s Aug. 15 meeting states: “Under general county policy, the county does not absorb a reduction in outside funding.  However, the drop in … funding could mean a reduction of about 20 percent in the number of annual trips.  This resolution seeks to maintain total funding for elderly and disabled trips at the original level.”

Some of the cost to the county may be made up by revenue from the upcoming sale of county transportation vehicles no longer in use, as well as by taking some money allocated for salaries for county positions that are currently budgeted for but vacant.

 

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