Applications for local project grants expected to be about 3,000

By Lucas L. Johnson II, Commercial Appeal
August 16, 2007

NASHVILLE -- An overwhelming number of applications for the state's $20 million in local project grants may slightly delay the announcement of recipients, state officials say.

Wednesday was the deadline for the so-called "community-enhancement grants" designated for nonprofit organizations or government agencies with programs for public safety, education, community development or cultural activities.

State officials first thought they would announce grant recipients next month, but Secretary of State Riley Darnell said it will be closer to October because of the time needed to process all the applications received and type information into a database.

"It's going to take us awhile to log all of this," said Darnell, whose office is charged with distributing the funds. "The numbers are pretty overwhelming. It's going to be in the 3,000 range."

State officials said they expected a lot of late applicants right before the 4:30 p.m. CDT deadline.

"There's always a flurry at the last moment," said Gerald Reed, assistant to the secretary of state for public policy.

During the last General Assembly lawmakers compromised on a proposal to give each member a chunk of money for the projects by putting the secretary of state's office in charge of deciding how the grants should be distributed.

The grant program is part of Gov. Phil Bredesen's $27.8 billion budget, which took effect July 1. The original plan would have given each of the 99 representatives $100,000 to spend in their districts. The 33 senators would have gotten $300,000.

Even though there's no cap on the amount of money that can be given to an organization, Darnell said the state intends to make sure the funds are fairly distributed.

He said he plans to talk to lawmakers about projects of interest in their districts because there's only so much money available, and the overall requests could go over by at least $30 million.

"It looks like we're going to have $50 million to $100 million in requests," Darnell said.

Senate Republican Leader Mark Norris of Collierville said the last time he checked with the secretary of state's office the number of applications from his district indicated "the requests exceed the available funds."

House Majority Leader Gary Odom, D-Nashville, said several parks and community centers in his district have applied for approximately $100,000 in grant money for services and athletic programs.

"It will serve hundreds of children who need these programs," Odom said.