Texas Association of Regional Councils

Find Your COG

2010 TARC Quarterly Meeting

March 10-12, 2010
Omni Hotel Downtown
700 San Jacinto at 8th Street
Austin, Texas 78701

Click here for additional hotel information.
Click here for DRAFT meeting schedule.

Federal Weatherization Funds Hard at Work Texoma Council of
Governments Weatherization Program
Helps Low Income
Families

After a slow start in November, TCOG's weatherization program is now ahead of schedule helping low income families weatherize their homes. KXII news station talked with TCOG and a homeowner receiving weatherization to see just how far those stimulus dollars are going.

Visit the KXII website for the full story.

2010 Texas Conference on Aging

The 2010 Texas Conference on Aging (TCoA) will be held at the Inn of the Hills in Kerrville from March 21-24, 2010. This statewide conference is designed for aging professionals with both administrative and direct service responsibilities who work in a broad range of community-based settings. This annual conference promotes excellence in service delivery through the sharing of technical assistance, best practices, and management tools. The theme for 2010 “Deep in the Heart of Aging” reflects our passion and commitment to serving older Texans and their families. The event is hosted by the Texas Association of Area Agencies on Aging, the Texas Association of Aging Programs, and Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services. Numerous sponsorship opportunities are available. For more information or to register to attend this conference, visit www.texasconferenceonaging.org.

Gary Pitner, Panhandle Regional Planning Commission
Executive Director named Amarillo-Globe News Man of the Year

TARC 1st Vice President, Lubbock County Commissioner Patti Jones, TARC President, Mayor Pro Tem, City of Meadows Place Terry Henley, and TARC 2nd Vice President, Mayor Pro Tem, City of Waco, Randy Riggs

Read full story.

Resolve to be Ready

As the New Year approaches, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Ready Campaign is once again reminding people to Resolve to be Ready in 2010. While nearly 50 percent of Americans make New Year's Eve resolutions, very few manage to keep them. The Ready Campaign would like to make an emergency preparedness resolution easy to keep by providing the tools and resources needed to take the three important steps: get a kit, make a plan and be informed about the different types of emergencies that can happen in your area and their appropriate responses. We hope you will join the Ready Campaign this Holiday Season in promoting Resolve to be Ready.

Click here to download more information.

Citizen Corps Trailer Award Program
Pictured above are Don Dewberry and Gordy Van Steenberg of the Best Southwest Unified Citizen Corps Council receiving the trailer from Texas Citizen Corps Manager Julie Martinez

The Texas Citizen Corps Council and the Texas Association of Regional Councils (TARC) announce the second round of the Citizen Corps Trailer Award Program. Last quarter, two custom Citizen Corps Trailers were awarded during the TARC Annual Conference in South Padre Island. The two winning programs were Brazoria County from the Houston-Galveston Area Council and Best Southwest Citizen Corps Council from the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

TARC purchased two additional Pace 6' X 10' Cargo trailers with beautiful custom Citizen Corps graphics. The trailers will be awarded to the jurisdiction whose competitive application demonstrates the best plan for using the trailer to promote Citizen Corps programs as well as the Texas Homeland Security Strategy. The Texas Citizen Corps Council will score the applications and determine
the trailer recipients.

The highest scoring applications will be announced on February 15, 2010, at the Texas Homeland Security Conference in San Antonio. Please share this information with your Citizen Corps Councils, Fire Corps programs, Neighborhood Watch programs, Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS) programs, Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT), and Medical Reserve Corps (MRC teams). The deadline for submitting applications is December 22, 2009. Jurisdictions who submitted applications last quarter need not reapply unless wanting to make amendments or revisions.

TARC is honored to sponsor this opportunity for the benefit of your regional Citizen Corps programs.

Click here to download application

2009 Texas Conference on Regionalism

Some conference photos have been posted! Presentations are coming soon! Visit our conference pages.

American Reinvestment and Recovery Act:
Economic Stimulus Package
Click here for Updates on Economic Stimulus Package New updates are now available including a list of grant opportunities, criteria, and updated allocation numbers as of March 2009!

On February 17, 2009, the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, more commonly known as the Economic Stimulus Package, was signed into law by President Obama.

TARC has compiled preliminary information on the Act, along with several web resources that are continually being updated, as new information is provided. For additional information on the ACTT and these web-based resources, click here.

Texas Association of Regional Councils
The Texas Association of Regional Councils is the state organization of Texas' 24 regional councils of governments. With 2000 plus local government members, the regional councils of governments join local governments, as well as state, federal, and private partners, to provide cost-effective, better planned, and more accountable public services in each region of Texas.

News from TARC

Donations Sought for Heaters for Seniors, Disabled

2010 Census Count Important to Government Entities

2010 Officers Hosted First Quarterly Meeting

Falls Prevention Awareness Week Observed at Capitol

John R. Fernandez Confirmed as U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development

Efficient Planning Purchasing is Goal of PlanSource

National Citizen Corps Achievement Awards: Texas Finalists

Commissioner Staples Announces Creation of Texas Broadband Task Force: Regional Representative Chosen

Cherokee Sheriff's Office Dispatch Computer System with COG Grant-Jacksonville Paper

Texas Stimulus in Plain English: Who's watching your money?

AACOG Weatherization Assistance Program gets a boost!