As announced by Governor Matt Bevin on Monday, 49 different counties across the state will receive funding from excess coal severance tax revenue. More than $15 million will be allocated to these local communities who qualify for the Local Government Economic Assistance Fund (LGEAF), including Daviess County.
Daviess County was approved to receive $297,691.84 in additional revenue. The counties and municipalities that qualify for LGEAF are those that are considered “coal producers,” or those that see a significant amount of transported coal through the county. The LGEAF retains a portion of state collected coal and non-coal mineral severance taxes to eligible local governments.
“Enacted by the 2018 General Assembly, House Bill 200 directs that if actual coal severance tax revenue collected for the fiscal year exceeds the official estimate provided by the Office of the State Budget Director, 100 percent of the excess revenue shall be allocated to the LGEAF coal severance program,” the release states.
The actual revenue collected for fiscal year 2019 exceeded the official projection from the Office of the State Budget Director. While $77.9 million was projected, $92.9 million was collected, leaving a $15 million surplus.
Counties can use the funding for a variety of prioritized needs. These include public safety, environmental production, public transportation, health, recreation, libraries and educational facilities, social services, industrial and economic development and workforce training.
Daviess County Judge-Executive Al Mattingly said it’s too early to say exactly where that $297,691.84 will go because county commissioners must vote to decide. However, Mattingly said that money would be useful for a number of things.
“There’s a lot of things we can use it for,” he said. “We may use it to plug the deficit hole in our budget. There’s been a lot of safety issues we’ve been working on with the sheriff’s office, and it could go toward economic development as well.”
Mattingly said it was nice to see state leaders follow through with their promise.
“I appreciate the governor and the general assembly for sticking to their word — sometimes people say one thing and do another, but they didn’t,” he said.
