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gible for the grant because it was not located within a qualified census tract. He issued a statement on the County’s behalf, which read, “After further review of the County’s grant application, the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget determined the project was not eligible for funding.8e project scope included making improvements to recreation facilities, which was a qualify- ing factor.8 However, the project location had to be within a Qualified Cen- sus Tract.8 Upon review, it was determined that the project location was not within a Qualified Census Tract.8 e Montgomery County Board of Commissioners will continue to seek grant opportunities to improve the County’s recreation facilities.”

State Representative Leesa Hagan also commented on the situation. “Grants are a great way for cities and counties to obtain funds for various projects. The application process is usually pretty laborious and the requirements often very specific,” she remarked. “The Improving Neighborhood Outcomes in Disproportionally Impacted Communities grant is a federal grant which is administered by Governor Kemp’s Office of Planning and Budget. Unfortunately, according to requirements set forth by President Biden’s administration, the Montgomery County application did not qualify to receive any of these grant funds.”

She continued, “I have been in communication with the OPB, and they have apologized for mistakenly including Montgomery County on the original list of awardees. There will be other grant and funding opportunities in the future, and I am confident leaders in Montgomery County will apply for these to fund necessary projects in the community. I will, of course, support them in any way I can.”

An open records request was submitted to the Governor’s Office to review the documents related to the grant application, but has not been granted at the time of press.