Sec. 980.9. Responsibilities of current transportation providers in grant counties

(a) Regardless of their degree of participation in their county's coordinated service program, all public and private human service agencies or entities that apply for or have received federal, state or local government aid that is or may be used, in whole or in part, to provide and/or contract for passenger transportation services, or agencies that otherwise provide, purchase or operate transportation services, shall forward to their county's Services Coordinator the following information:

(1) the annual amounts and sources of federal, state or local financial aid they received that have actually been used for passenger transportation in the two most recent complete program fiscal years;

(2) the annual costs of passenger transportation provided under their jurisdiction for the two most recent complete program fiscal years; such costs shall be on a fully allocated basis and shall include appropriate pro-rated costs for agency activities which encompass several functions;

(3) copies of their most recent request(s) for federal, state or local aid that included a transportation component and their most recent approved request for same; and copies of the most recent audit or financial statement, if any, of their programs that included transportation services;

(4) any data or other information requested by the county's Services Coordinator regarding the agency's transportation services, facilities, equipment, staffing or usage, and operation budgets, as may be necessary for the preparation, implementation or updating of the county's coordinated public transportation service plan. In cases where any such data is not readily available, agencies shall make all records, files and other agency information, as is necessary to complete or calculate such data, available to their County's Services Coordinator for this purpose.

(b) Current operators of passenger transportation utilizing federal or state funds are encouraged to lease their vehicles to the CSO for use in the coordinated service. In some cases, county governments or appropriate State agencies may require this. Current providers of client-oriented transportation that join in the coordinated service are expected to phase-out regular passenger transportation operating responsibilities so that the productivity of the coordinated service will be maximized. Current providers would purchase transportation service from the CSO for their clients through tickets, monthly passes or other appropriate mechanisms.

(c) Agencies which are current purchasers of transportation receiving federal or state funds by or through the County, are expected to give preference to the CSO in purchasing transportation service and client referral.

(d) Current operators of vehicles purchased through the Section 16(b)(2) Program administered by the Department are encouraged to join the county's coordinated service by leasing their current vehicles to the CSO; if so they would then purchase service for their clients from the CSO. Future grants of 16(b)(2) vehicles to private, non-profit organizations in the rural county would be contingent upon such vehicles' full time management and control by the CSO.

(e) School districts are encouraged to participate in their county's coordinated service program as authorized in Section 1502 of the State Education Law. Section 1502 authorizes school districts to contract to store, maintain and repair any motor vehicle of and provide driver training for any operator of any motor vehicle used to provide a portion of a county's coordinated public transportation service and owned by any municipal corporation or any not-for-profit organization. The board of education of any school district is also authorized to contract with an operator of a coordinated public transportation service for the purpose of providing a portion of that service.