Representatives of the Five-County Association of Governments updated Garfield County commissioners on a program that helps small towns with administration, grantwriting, capital-facilities planning and pandemic-era compliance, and warned that a recent funding cut and the federal government shutdown threaten services.

Roger Carter, local administrative advisor for the Five-County AOG, described work with eight municipalities in Garfield County. He said the program helps towns that lack a full-time administrator with capital-facilities plans, grant applications, COVID-funding compliance and code updates. Carter said the program uses Southern Utah University graduate students where appropriate and tailors assistance to each town’s needs.

Five-County’s director, Darren Bushman (ret.), told the commission the program lost $500,000 during the last legislative session and that the region is requesting restoration. He asked county leaders to support returning the funds to the program, arguing the LAA service is cost-effective and that more capacity is needed to serve many small towns.

Bushman also described internal consolidation of Community Action Partnership, heat-assistance and weatherization programs into a combined Community Support Services group, and said the AOG has drawn down available federal funds ahead of the government shutdown and secured a $450,000 line of credit to manage near-term payroll. He warned that some client services, including heat assistance, have no available funds while the federal shutdown continues.

Commissioners discussed whether Five-County’s capacity could assist Garfield County with wildfire planning and other resource needs, and Bushman said the AOG is exploring a dedicated natural-resources team to help counties with NRCS, CWPP (Community Wildfire Protection Plan) and NEPA-related grant work.

No formal county action was required; the presentation was informational, and commissioners expressed support for restoring the LAA funding and for coordination on wildfire planning.