ETCOG Announces Quitman Mayor Randy Dunn as Chairman and Welcomes New Board Officers

ETCOG is now accepting interest forms from individuals passionate about making a difference in our region. We have multiple vacancies on our advisory committees, and we invite citizens in our region to submit your interest for consideration.

The Texas Department of Agriculture is accepting applications for the Community Development Fund. Maximum award amount is $750,000 for eligible applicants. Applications are due on December 3, 2024.

ETCOG is proud to announce its Executive Committee approved the renewal of purchasing a mass emergency notification system as a part of its public safety program for the 14 th consecutive year. ETCOG has entered a new five-year contract with Rave Mobility for an annual payment of $80,000, funded by our Homeland Security Grant funding. This system allows ETCOG to partner with East Texas’ city and county emergency management coordinators to send messages quickly notifying citizens about emergencies such as: Tornadoes and storm events Drinking water contamination Utility outages Evacuation notices and routes Missing persons Fires or floods Bomb threats Hostage or active shooter situations Chemical spills or gas leaks Other emergency incidents where rapid and accurate notification is essential This will be the second five-year contract ETCOG has entered into with Rave Mobility, offering unlimited minutes/texting, unlimited system users, and unlimited weather warnings that instantly and automatically alert recipients based on weather in the area, including type of weather, location, and severity. It also allows emergency management coordinators to deploy messages in over 50 different language translations and integrates with social media platforms. “We are excited to continue our service with Rave Mobility to offer Smart911 alerts,” said ETCOG’s Public Safety Director, Stephanie Heffner. “The capacity to have unlimited minutes and users opens up the opportunity to partner with more jurisdictions in the region that may have not participated before. Also, we know many of our jurisdictions used to pay for weather warning services out of pocket, so we are happy to offer a cost-saving opportunity with this vendor.” The system has been contracted for Anderson, Camp, Cherokee, Gregg, Harrison, Marion, Panola, Rains, Rusk, Smith, Upshur, Van Zandt, and Wood counties. To sign up for Smart911 Alerts from your community, visit www.etcog.org/alerts . The system will collect information to share with first responders on your household, medical and emergency contacts, and if there are pets in the home.

Assistance is available to find and compare 2025 health and drug plans now

ETCOG is constantly evaluating opportunities to add value to our members. Many of you have expressed interest in exploring opportunities to drive financial and administrative efficiencies via collaborative purchasing of employee benefits. We’ve engaged our benefits broker partners at Gallagher to help us assess the feasibility of developing a multiple-employer benefits pool for ETCOG members. We'll kick off this process with an educational session. Please join ETCOG and Gallagher’s team of dedicated experts responsible for building and maintaining pools across the U.S. on Thursday, October 17, at 10:00 am for a virtual session to explore the following: What is a benefits pool Why joining a benefits pool is valuable What changes for your leadership team and employees How state and federal legislation impacts the formation of a new consortium The steps and timeline for creating a new consortium

ETCOG has received applications for TCEQ's Municipal Solid Waste Grants. The applications are available for public and private review through October 11, 2024.

ETCOG is proud to host the Texas Department of Agriculture on October 15th to hold a TxCDBG Kickoff Meeting. The meeting will be held at 3:00 PM at ETCOG Offices. Join us to hear about grant allocations planned for our region and an overview of proposed changes to the application process. Regional input is welcomed on how TDA can best serve non-entitlement communities through the revised application process. Questions? Contact our Economic Development Specialist! Rebecca Gage , 903-218-6499

Deadline for applications September 26, 2024