PROGRAM EVALUATION R EPORT

PROGRAM EVALUATION REPORT

Rural Infrastructure Authority

Date of Submission: April 23, 2019

The contents of this report are considered sworn testimony from the agency director.

Agency Director Name: Start Date: Number of Years as Agency Head: Number of Years at Agency: Email:

Bonnie Ammons 11/07/12 6 years 6 years info@ria.

Primary Agency Staff Contact for Oversight Study

Name:

Bonnie Ammons

Phone:

803-737-0390

Email:

info@ria.

Main Agency Contact Information Phone: Email: Mailing Address:

803-737-0390 info@ria. 1201 Main Street, Suite 1600 Columbia, SC 29201

Agency Online Resources Website address:

ria.

Online Quick Links Reports Funding Partners



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Table of Contents

I. Agency Snapshot...............................................................................................................................3

A. Glossary of Terms...........................................................................................................................3 B. History..............................................................................................................................................5 C. Governing Body, Organizational Chart, and Related Entities...................................................7 D. Successes and Issues.....................................................................................................................10

II. Agency Records, Policies, and Risk Mitigation Practices................................................13

A. Records and Policies Management............................................................................................13 B. Audit and/or Other Risk Mitigation Practices...........................................................................16

III. Agency Spending...........................................................................................................................18 IV. Agency Legal Directives, Services, and Performance....................................................18

A. Laws................................................................................................................................................18 B. Deliverables...................................................................................................................................18 C. Performance..................................................................................................................................18

V. Agency Ideas and Recommendations....................................................................................19 VI. Feedback (Optional)....................................................................................................................35 VII. Attachments - Tables .................................................................................................................36

A. Agency Organizational Chart........................................................................................................36 B. Organizational Unit Details...........................................................................................................37 C. Updated "Report and External Review Template" from the Accountability Report............39 D. Financial Overview.........................................................................................................................40 E. "Legal Standards Template" from the Accountability Report.................................................41 F. Deliverables.....................................................................................................................................44 G. Performance....................................................................................................................................50

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A. Glossary of Terms

1. Glossary of agency terms. Term, Phrase or Acronym ARC Agency Board CDBG CWSRF

DHEC

DLG

DOR DWSRF

EDA EPA FY HUD IFCC

I. Agency Snapshot

Meaning of the Term, Phrase or Acronym Appalachian Regional Commission ? Funding from ARC to the State is used to partner with other infrastructure funding assistance. SC Rural Infrastructure Authority. SC Rural Infrastructure Authority Board of Directors. Community Development Block Grant Program. CDBG is a federal grant program funded by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. Clean Water State Revolving Loan Fund. CWSRF is capitalized annually by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and revolves from loan repayments and investment earnings. Clean water loan funds are used by borrowers to improve water quality and assist eligible sanitary sewer and storm drainage projects. SC Department of Health and Environmental Control. DHEC is a funding partner and works with RIA to jointly administer the State Revolving Loan Funds. DHEC serves as the federal grantee for the annual State Revolving Fund capitalization grant from the United States Environmental Protection Agency. DHEC selects projects for assistance, reviews preliminary engineering reports, issues construction permits and oversees the federal program requirements. Division of Local Government. Formerly with the State Budget and Control Board and transferred to the RIA in FY 2015. DLG is responsible for RIA administered loan programs. RIA refers to the division as the Office of Local Government. SC Department of Revenue. DOR establishes the identification of tiered counties which are used to determine rural and disadvantaged areas. Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Fund. DWSRF is capitalized annually by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and revolves from loan repayments and investment earnings. Drinking water loan funds are used to help borrowers achieve or maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. United States Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration. EDA is a funding partner. United States Environmental Protection Agency. EPA is the federal funding agency for the State Revolving Loan Funds. Fiscal Year. US Department of Housing and Urban Development. Funding from HUD to the State is used to partner with other infrastructure funding assistance. Infrastructure Funders Coordinating Committee. IFCC is an informal committee of federal and state infrastructure funders in

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Infrastructure Match

OLG

RIA RIF SCWQRFA SCIFA SIRF SRF SWSF Tiered Counties

USDA RD

South Carolina including RIA, SC Department of Commerce, SC Department of Health and Environmental Control, US Department of Agriculture Rural Development, and US Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration. For RIA program assistance, infrastructure is defined as water, wastewater and storm water facilities. Refers to cost sharing in eligible grant projects. Cost sharing helps to leverage grant funds. All grantees pay for non-construction costs for qualified projects. Projects located in Tier I and II counties, as defined by the DOR, also provide a 25% match of the total construction costs. Office of Local Government. OLG is responsible for the loan programs at RIA. Also referred to as the Division of Local Government. OLG manages the financial responsibilities of the SRF program including loan policies, loan applications and credit reviews, loan agreements and disbursements as well as loan administration duties including repayments. South Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority. Rural Infrastructure Fund. RIF is used to fund RIA grants for qualified projects in rural and disadvantaged areas. South Carolina Water Quality Revolving Fund Authority. SCWQRFA is responsible for the State Revolving Loan Funds which consist of the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Funds. South Carolina Infrastructure Facilities Authority. SCIFA is responsible for the South Carolina Infrastructure Revolving Loan Fund. South Carolina Infrastructure Revolving Loan Fund. SIRF is designed to finance infrastructure projects that are not otherwise eligible for SRF assistance. State Revolving Funds. The SRF makes low-interest loans available to eligible borrowers for both the Clean Water State Revolving Fund and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. The program is co-administered with DHEC. Statewide Water and Sewer Fund. SWSF provides RIA grant funding for areas not otherwise eligible for Rural Infrastructure Fund assistance. Counties are designated by the SC Department of Revenue based on unemployment and per capita income data. Counties are designated as Tiers I ? IV. Tier I ? developed Tier II ? moderately developed Tier III- under developed Tier IV- least developed RIA uses these designations to determine if a construction match for RIA grants is applicable. United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Development programs. USDA RD is a funding partner.

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B. History

2. History of significant events related to the agency, from agency's origin to the present.

? 2010 o The SC General Assembly created the SC Rural Infrastructure Authority by Act 171 of 2010 after overriding a veto by the Governor. However, the agency did not begin operations until funding was provided in FY 2013.

? 2012 o Proviso 80A.32 of the FY 2013 Appropriations Act transferred all RIF balances under the control of the DLG to the RIA. Cash balances totaled $37.8 million.

o The Board was appointed and an Executive Director was hired. The SC Department of Commerce provided initial staffing and administrative help to RIA as specified in S.C. Code Section 11-5065. (The Department of Commerce continues to provide such support through a shared services contract.) The Board established procedures for making grants available to eligible entities.

o The Board established a five-year allocation plan that would provide a predictable source of funds to meet local infrastructure needs. This allocation allowed local entities to be pro-active and take a planned approach to addressing significant infrastructure needs.

o The Board also developed a strategic plan to qualify projects as defined in S.C. Code Section 11-50-40(13) of the South Carolina Rural Infrastructure Act: for the protection of health and the environment and to support economic development. Qualified projects would be determined by the Board based on competitive criteria including need, feasibility and impact.

? 2013

o The Board established a schedule for accepting competitive applications twice a year with the ability to consider requests for urgent needs at any time.

o Staff was hired and the Board approved the first grants for infrastructure in rural and distressed counties.

? 2014 o Under the SC Rural Infrastructure Act, a "rural infrastructure project" is very broadly defined as located in a county designated as distressed or least developed pursuant to S.C. Code Section 12-6-3360 for 2009 or located in a county with a project that otherwise meets the requirements of this item. Because the Rural Infrastructure Act allowed for consideration of projects that would 5|Page

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