October 29 was the annual pitch session for capital outlay money requests by local governments to local legislators.
As usual, the session was sponsored by the South Central Council of Governments, which discouraged public viewing by not advertising or returning calls about the who, what, where, why and when.
But during the Oct. 28 T or C city commission meeting, City Manager Gary Whitehead briefly mentioned a problem with the five projects to be pitched the next day.
The 2026 House Bill 247 and state Department of Finance and Administration changed the rules around capital outlay and the Infrastructure Capital Improvements Plan (or ICIP) last year.
The rule has always been that no project will be funded with any form of capital outlay unless it’s on the ICIP list–from legislators’ discretionary capital outlay, severance tax bonds, the general fund, or from the governor’s discretionary capital outlay money.
The new rule is that by July 1 each municipality and county must submit their ICIP list. Only tweaks can be made to projects on the list, but no new projects can be added.
Unfortunately Whitehead thought the city could broadly amend the ICIP until Oct. 23. He asked the city commission to add two new projects to the ICIP during the Oct. 14 meeting–in preparation for the Oct. 29 legislative pitch session.
He was given approval to add a permanent stand for the Huey helicopter recently delivered to the Veterans Memorial Park and shade structures on Foch Street and environs.
Despite the rule change, the same list that was approved by the city commission on Oct. 14 was pitched to the legislators on Oct. 29. See: https://sierracountycitizen.org/t-or-c-will-ask-its-three-legislators-for-1-9-m-in-capital-outlay-this-year/
That list was:
- Clancy Street lift station and sewer line: This will replace the line and pumps that get sewage and wastewater up to the top of the Veterans’ Hill and then on to the wastewater treatment plant. Whitehead said a little over $1 million in funding has been found but $500,000 more is needed to complete the project, which will be the amount of the capital outlay request.
- Lee Belle Johnson Community Center: Closed for about five years due to the hot springs beneath cleaving the floor, about $500,000 has been found. About $500,000 more is needed to engineer and fix the foundation, which will be the amount of the capital outlay request.
- Sewer Vacuum System along east Riverside Drive: About $470,000 has been secured, but $500,000 more is needed, which will be the amount of the capital outlay request.
- Permanent stand for the helicopter on Vet’s Hill: The capital outlay request will be $100,000.
- Shade for Foch St. and environs: The capital outlay request will be $300,000.
During an Oct. 30 interview, Whitehead said the legislators “want to fund” the permanent stand for the helicopter, even though it’s not on the ICIP.
But the 2026 House Bill 247, Section 1, part C. states, “Capital outlay authorizations and appropriations of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) or more shall not be made for a project unless the project is included on an infrastructure capital improvement plan.”
Maybe if the legislators each agree to pitch in a portion of the $100,000 for the copter stand it won’t violate HB 247? We’ll see.
Senator Crystal Brantley has $4.17 million in discretionary capital outlay this year and Representatives Gail Armstrong and Rebecca Dow each have $2.5 million. But, as Dow pointed out during the pitch session, T or C residents are only 13 percent of her constituency, which comes to $325,000, if she were to strictly apportion her capital outlay proportionally.
The changes around capital outlay and the ICIP are due to the massive backlog of unspent appropriated funds. HB 247 lays down the law for clawing back those funds if they go unused for long. The DFA followed suit by forcing local governments to finalize their ICIPs sooner. The state agencies and legislators can’t plan ahead until the local governments do. The changes are forcing better planning and spending and commitment making from local and state governments.