The San Patricio County Commissioners Court approved a consolidated report of American Rescue Plan Act (SLFRF) allocations and approved several grant-related actions and contracts, county staff said.

Melanie Cooper, grants manager, told the court that the SLFRF items had been approved individually previously and the consolidated report “shows exactly where the money was budgeted and where it went through as.” She said the spreadsheet had been updated to reflect fourth-quarter 2024 totals and that categories were adjusted to ensure correct revenue-replacement accounting.

The court voted to approve the consolidated SLFRF report. Cooper said changes included reclassifying some IT categories under the public sector to avoid over-reporting revenue replacement and to preserve eligible balances.

The court also authorized staff to submit a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) application to Texas Division of Emergency Management and FEMA for expenses the county incurred during a recent fire. Cooper said the county will tabulate precinct-level expenditures and work with staff to capture overtime and other eligible costs.

Separately, the court approved staff applying to the Coastal Management Program, using GO Mesa funds as a required local match to seek additional project funding (Coastal Management Program projects estimated in the transcript at roughly $200,000–$400,000). Cooper said: “If it’s awarded…we’ll come back with those projects and the approval of the budget at that time.”

On mitigation and infrastructure funding, the court authorized its auditors to release a request for qualifications (RFQ) for engineering services to support Community Development Block Grant mitigation projects and awarded a BRIC RFQ to Hansen Engineering after Hansen was the only firm to apply. Cooper said Hansen has relevant local experience and will perform planning and benefit-cost analysis work.

The court also approved entering into a contract with Silver Construction for septic construction work under a Texas Department of Agriculture award — the contract amount reported in the meeting packet was $397,275, funded by the Department of Agriculture CDV award. Cooper noted a $20,000 mobilization/materials line item that does not change the contract price.

All motions on the consolidated SLFRF report, FMAG application, coastal management application authorization, RFQ actions, BRIC award and the Silver Construction contract passed on court motions. Where specific vote tallies were not recorded in the public transcript, the court announced “motion carries.”

Court members asked for access to the grant tracking software and for staff to provide more detailed walkthroughs of the SLFRF spreadsheet on request. Cooper said the county has a QuickBase instance showing expenditures in real time and offered in-person walkthroughs.

No amendments to the grant contracts or project scopes were made at the meeting; the court authorized applications, awards and contracting steps to proceed as outlined by staff.