QCREDA, TCOC & CCSEC Make Presentations at CCB

By Tom Kocal

Acronyms ruled at the March 19 CCB (Carroll County Board) meeting. Three representatives addressed the Board to explain and educate about the services they provide to people, businesses, and the government in Upstate Illinois.

QCREDA and SB 1783

Andrew Hamilton, Executive Director of the Quad Cities Regional Economic Development Authority (QCREDA), was first on the agenda. QCREDA is a regional bond authority that covers the counties of Henry, Knox, Mercer, and Rock Island Counties.

"QCREDA provides financing at a lower interest rate to spur economic development, job growth, and stimulate business activity," Hamilton said. "We have issued over $100 million worth of bonds that have created or retained 1,540 jobs in our four-county region."

Hamilton's main reason for attending the Board meeting was to discuss pending legislation that will affect Northwest Illinois if approved. Senate Bill 1783 was introduced by Sen. Mike Jacobs (D-36, Moline) to add territory to QCREDA to include four new counties.

SB 1783 amends the Quad Cities Regional Economic Development Authority Acts and provides that the territory of the Authority will include JoDaviess, Carroll, Whiteside, and Stephenson Counties. The measure also provides for the appointment of additional members to the Board of the Authority, and states that the additional members shall be appointed by the county board chairpersons of JoDaviess, Carroll, Whiteside, and Stephenson Counties. SB 1783 increases the bonding power of the Authority to $250,000,000 (now, $100,000,000). The bill, introduced Feb. 20, has been placed on a Calendar Order of 2nd Reading.

"When QCREDA was created in 1995, we only had three counties," Hamilton explained. "We had a 2-year strategic planning session when we wanted to add Knox County. We approached their Board, much as we have done today, and received overwhelming, unanimous support for them to pass a resolution in support of being added to QCREDA's territory. After that was done, we went to the legislature and introduced a bill that also passed unanimously."

In this case, Hamilton noted, SB 1783 has already been introduced in order to not only expand the benefit area, but to "dove-tail with the legislation to increase the bonding capacity" by $150 million. Hamilton stressed that there is no cost to the counties involved.

"QCREDA is unique in that it is a unit of government, but it is self-sustaining. We charge a fee to the borrower to issue bonds that will reduce their interest rate. It's a very reasonable fee, and the borrower is happy to pay that fee, because the benefits of the reduced interest rate that they get is much, much higher than the cost of us issuing the bonds."

Hamilton explained that there is a one-time issuance fee of 80 basis points. With 100 basis points being 1%, that means the borrower pays a fee of 8-tenths of one percent of the amount borrowed. In most cases, because of the lower interest rates, the borrower has that fee paid back within the first year of the bond, "many times within the first quarter." For a bond of $2 million, the borrower would pay almost $20,000, but could realize a reduction of around $40,000/year for 20 years.

"We don't have any taxing powers, and we do not generally receive any appropriations from the state. So we operate based solely on the fees we charge. We are operationally self-sufficient. QCREDA is an additional tool for you to use in economic development to help companies borrow at a lower interest rate. We are an intermediary - a middle man - that lends our governmental name to a project, then that project can qualify for tax-free financing which is at a lower interest rate, generally 2 to 3 percent lower than what a traditional interest rate is."

Sharon Hook (D-2) posed a question pertaining to the need for this particular bonding agency, with all the bonding companies already in existence. "What is the need to add four more counties to your district?", Hook asked.

Hamilton explained that Carroll, Jo Daviess, Whiteside and Stephenson Counties are not currently represented by a "regional development authority," so they don't have this additional resource. He explained that sometimes in economic development, people prefer borrowing on a regional basis, because then the funds stay within the region, re-circulating within the region.

Chairman Rod Fritz (D-3) said he and Michael Doty, County Administrator, attended the Carroll Co. Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) meeting Wed. night, where Hamilton went into much more detail. Fritz said that "QCREDA will offer a lower interest rate, but it is not a 'silver bullet' that will be a great thing for all companies. You have to be a really credit-worthy company and have a good credit rating to be able to borrow money to begin with. But there is no liability to the county. The bond is underwritten by a bank or other party during the issuance process.

"There are alternatives. You can go directly to the state bonding authority. However, QCREDA and Hamilton will offer their professional assistance as an additional economic development tool," Fritz added. "I can see no down-side to it."

Hamilton said that the borrower would not go directly to QCREDA instead of going to their bank. "We have to have their bank be a part of this process by backing the bonds with a letter of credit. I use a highly technical term called the 'UBH' - who is the 'Ultimate Bag-Holder.' That is the bank. If the borrower doesn't pay, then the bank pays the bonds off. People who buy our bonds don't lose anything."

Fritz proposed a Resolution be presented for Board approval, after more discussion at pertinent committees, at the April meeting.

Hamilton said, "I had a nice stay in Carroll County last night, and wouldn't mind coming back if you'd like more information."

CCSEC

Carol Geary, a certified Drug and Alcohol Counselor representing the Carroll County Substance Education Coalition, reported on the results of a recent study funded by a grant received in early 2008. Geary is the Project Coordinator for the Strategic Prevention Framework-State Incentive Grant. The study was to analyze the communities and identify significant risk and protective factors children and their families are facing.

"In talking with the students, we found that alcohol is readily available," Geary told the Board. "They don't have a problem getting it. They're getting it at parties, and from family members and older friends, generally 21-22 year olds. Now we have 16 and 17 year-olds hooking up with people over 21, which is a really significant problem. As a consequence of this interaction, there has been an increase in the number of reported sexual assaults in the county."

Geary stated that according to the study, kids are getting access to, and drinking, a lot of alcohol, and in many cases, every weekend. She said that because the seven small communities in Carroll County are in an isolated, rural area, kids feel there is a minimal risk in getting caught by their parents or the police. They also have the perception that if they are caught, nothing will happen and that there will be no serious consequences for their illegal actions. Parents feel this way as well.

"We have to understand that this situation creates a 'social norm' that allows this behavior to continue," Geary explained. "As long as this continues and is ingrained in the community, the risks will continue to get higher and higher. In some cases, the risk factors here in Carroll County are higher than the national level."

Geary said CCSEC has about another 15 months' funding from this grant, a $125,000 per year grant for 3-years. Another grant has been submitted that if received, would grant funding for an additional 5 years ($125,000/year) of assistance and programs to help alleviate this critical situation.

"This situation has been here for a long time, and it's not just going to go away. We have to develop what I call a 'Blanket of Prevention,' where we look at all the risks and protective factors in the community and figure out the best way to address them."

Other risk factors identified by the study include:

- 49% of Carroll County 8th-graders report someone in their family has a serious alcohol/drug problem;

- Social and community norms promote underage alcohol consumption and over consumption. Youth and adults are frequently "binge drinking."

Geary said CCSEC is planning to educate community members and leaders about these issues. Training for Intervention Procedures (TIPS) certification class started March 10. Class are offered free to any Carroll County Business and their employees that sell alcoholic beverages.

"TIPS is a positive approach towards serving alcohol responsibly. TIPS training is used to educate retailers and their servers about responsible alcohol sales, how to protect their business and their staff from lawsuits including legal problems related to underage drinking. TIPS also teaches strategies for handling intoxicated patrons and how to apply strategies identifying potential problems."

Geary, along with grant assistant, Freddie Preston, are certified to teach the course. Both Geary and Preston will be able to do the TIPS training, along with the Beverage Alcohol Sellers and Servers Education and Training (BASSETT) program. Both programs are approved by the Illinois Liquor Control Commission (ILCC). Businesses who have certified Tips staff on premises may be able to receive a discount on their dram shop insurance.

Geary said it is the job of businesses to be profitable and it is the TIPS trainer's job to help the business keep as much profit as possible by reducing the possibility of fines for infractions of liquor laws. Geary stated, "By offering this training we are hoping to help local sellers and servers identify potential problems and protect themselves and their businesses from possible fines, loss of liquor licenses and lawsuits."

Other programs designed to give sustainability to CCSEC in order to continue doing prevention work in the community include Third-Party deterrent, called a "shoulder tap," a non-enforcement campaign that places supervised youth in parking lots of approved businesses that sell alcohol. They ask customers to purchase alcohol for them. If they say no, they will get a card that basically says thank you for caring. If they agree, their card will say, "Do you understand the consequences of your actions?"

"Kids will be kids," Geary said. "They will always try to push their limits. It is up to us adults to handle this situation." CCSEC is also working with students in the three county high schools to create Social Norm campaigns to promote healthy alternatives to alcohol use. A Hot-line to report underage drinking activities, in cooperation with Carroll County Crime Stoppers, will be announced soon to identify areas where youth are known to gather to drink.

"Sticker Shock" is coming April 2 as well. It is a statewide campaign to remind store owners and customers that it is illegal to purchase or sell alcohol for minors. Part of the grant will also help fund local law enforcement's efforts on twice-a-month "party patrols." She added that Illinois needs a better Social Host Liability law. "There are too many loop-holes now. It makes it difficult to enforce, because parents don't have to allow police on their property without a search warrant. By then, the kids have taken off."

Geary said there are only 130 of these grants available nationwide, and hopes that CCSEC will be awarded one of them in order to continue the effort to create some lasting changes in Carroll County.

TCOC

Sandra Julifs, Director of the Tri-County Opportunities Council, supplied information to the Board on the Community Action Agency that serves Northwest Illinois.

"The first thing you'll notice is that 'Tri-County' is a bit of a misnomer, since there are nine counties that we serve, one of which is Carroll," Julifs mentioned.

"Thank you for your many, many years of support for our Homemaker Program. Last year's Senior Services funding that help support part of our Homemaker Program, allowed us to provide over 18,000 hours of in-home care to senior citizens right here in Carroll County, which allowed them to stay in their homes, instead of having to look in to nursing home care. We very much appreciate that money.

"We also appreciate the letters sent by this Board late last fall to the state, in support of our effort to get the money from the state that was owed to us. We were nearly five-months behind, and we were in a very precarious cash-flow situation. Fortunately, your letters helped get that money moving again. We appreciate that very much."

Julifs said the TCOC was formed as a Community Action Agency during the "War on Poverty" in the mid-60's by a group of concerned citizens from Lee, Ogle and Whiteside counties for the purpose of implementing the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964. From early in the 1970's, TCOC was already providing several services in Carroll County unofficially. In the early 1980's the organization, by resolution, vote to name them the official Community Action Agency for Carroll County. This meant that otherwise unattainable grants needed for Carroll County services could now be applied for.

Because of its structure, 1/3 of the board must be composed of public officials or their representative. Generally, they use the respective county boards. In Carroll County, Juanita Randklev (D-1) serves as TCOC representative to the Board.

"Juanita is an asset to our board," said Julifs. "She is very helpful, she participates, and she volunteers to help with our projects. We thank you for appointing her."

Julifs said that because of the Economic Stimulus Act, TCOC will be receiving "a lot more funding" than they have in the past. This means more services will be available at no charge to Carroll County low-income residents.

One of these programs is the 1-year-old program called the Energy Conservation and Home Repair (ECHR). "We were asked to do this in Savanna, and find 25 homes that needed both weatherization services - insulation, repair/replacement of the heating source, windows, doors, etc - plus home repairs, like leaky roofs that you can't insulate, or fixing bad wiring in the attic so that you can insulate." They also replace a lot of glass in windows and doors, and do a lot of caulking and weather stripping.

TCOC has been in Savanna doing weatherization projects for many years. It is only one of 4 such programs in the state. But government regulations prevent TCOC to identify more homes in Savanna, because they are not allowed to re-weatherize a home if it had been done after 1994. Seventeen more homes in Savanna need to be identified for assistance. Julifs asks that the public call Wayne Thompson at TCOC if they know of anyone needing this service. Call Toll-free 1-800-323-5434.

At some point, TCOC may be able to provide this program to other communities in Carroll County, but not yet. Each home can receive up to $8000 in services, sometimes more.

The Stimulus Bill will bring much more funding to TCOC, Julifs told the Board.

"The weatherization program has a normal budget of $1.2 million for the 9 county area. For the year starting in July 2009, we are going to have $5 million. An the year starting next July (2010) we will have $6 million budgeted. That's $11 million in 2 years to weatherize homes. That was a shock to us."

Julifs remarked that the reason so much funding was appropriated toward weatherization was because, "It is a job producer. Our suppliers are already putting people to work to get the supplies ready. There is only one firm in the country that provides the type of mobil home windows that we're supposed to use. They'll have to ramp up quite a lot."

This program serves people up to 150% of the poverty level. She hopes they will be able to go up to 200% of poverty. For example, for a family of four, that represents an income of $44,000/year. And the state plans to raise the amount allowed to be spent on each home. Last year, TCOC weatherized 24 homes in Carroll County. She expects to do 50 to 70 per year for the next 2 years. Any interested local contractors may call Wayne at the above listed 800 number.

Their Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) provides outreach services for low-income residents, like help in locating employment, housing, nutrition resources and health care. CSBG's Economic Development Program also provides assistance to small businesses who are willing to create jobs for low-income individuals. Normally, the annual budget for this program is $600,000. Julifs said that through the Stimulus Bill, they will get an extra $1 million.

"It's great having all this additional money to work with," Julifs said. "When you realize that in 2010, when this stimulus money ends just a little over 18 months from now, what happens to those people that were working? We will have to adjust to that."

TCOC's Scholarship Program is part of the CSBG, and will also be funded more, allowing for more scholarships to be awarded. Julifs urges students to apply on-line at www.tcohelps.com.

The Head Start Program will be funded more. "Families in Head Start are the poorest of the poor. That's a family of four with an annual income of under $21,000. But that's the great thing about Head Start. It is very family oriented." Head Start is a child and family development program that provides comprehensive services to over 700 3-and 4-year-old low-income children. Services include education, mental, dental and medical health, nutrition, disabilities, family support, and community integration.

One of the oldest of TCOC's programs is the Foster Grandparent Program, which provides part-time opportunities for low-income persons, 60 years and older. The grandparents assist children having exceptional needs at various sites throughout the 9-county service area. Participants receive a stipend plus a transportation allowance.

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