Statewide Regional Council Impact: Return on Investment
Our 11 regional councils collectively generate an impressive Return on Investment of $48 for every $1 in local government dues for our annual operations and programs
Since 2002, we have administered over 5,600 projects involving over $335 million in direct federal spending and hundreds of millions more in leveraged state, local, private and philanthropic investments
Our regional councils have helped secure nearly $212 million in EDA public works and economic adjustment investments for local job creation and retention initiatives in distressed areas of the state
Within the past fi ve years, our regional councils have lent nearly $1 million through our business development loan funds, leveraging an additional $700,000 in private investments for entrepreneurs and companies
We have helped over 45,000 Workforce Investment Act (WIA) clients and managed almost $31 million in workforce training funds in the past five years
During the past five years, our COGs have administered over $88 million in Area Agency on Aging programs serving over 247,000 clients
We ensured all of Oklahoma’s local communities are eligible for federal first responder grants by complying with the new training and planning requirements of the new National Incident Management System (NIMS)
Statewide Connections
11 COGs serve Oklahoma’s 77 counties, 629 municipal governments and the state’s 3.5 million residents
Our COGs are governed by policy boards with majority control by local government offi cials, along with representatives of the business, educational, community and nonprofit sectors. Collectively, some 362 individuals serve on our boards and over 900 others serve in various advisory committee or task force capacities
All eleven COGs administer CDBG programs for their local governments. We also manage rural economic action plans, rural fi re defense programs, undertake state infrastructure capital improvement planning, manage wireless E 9-1-1 fund distribution, serve as census depositories and help local governments meet federal requirements for allhazards mitigation and homeland security preparedness planning
Two of our COGs are federally recognized Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), and many of our COGs manage comprehensive GIS databases and conduct economic profi les, special needs projects and a variety of other services
Community Members
A grandmother needs to visit her doctor to have her insulin level checked. A teenage baby sitter calls 9-1-1 to report his young charge is choking on a marble. A father with young children, hopeful to maintain his small business and not up-root his family with a move to the city for work, secures a loan to purchase much needed equipment. A soccer team has a new fi eld, ending an hour-long drive for practice and games. What do they have in common? All of them benefi tted from the work of Oklahoma’s regional councils of governments.
As members of the Oklahoma Association of Regional Councils (OARC), our statewide network of 11 regional councils provides numerous services – professional, technical and supportive program services – that benefi t Oklahomans of all age and residence on a daily basis. We are emissaries for local governments within our diverse regions, advocating at the state and federal levels.
Our regional councils provide a broad range of services to local governments within our multi-jurisdictional regions. Traditionally, our services have focused on planning, program management and technical assistance related to community and economic development, infrastructure development and resource management.
Today, we are taking a leadership role on a variety of important issues, such as homeland security, hazard mitigation, rural fi re defense, environmental stewardship and brownfi elds redevelopment, transportation planning, business and workforce development and human services, such as housing aid and elder care. Various state grant programs provide us with the resources and fl exibility to plan and implement an array of services, such as capital improvement planning and rural fi re defense planning.
Our regional councils serve local governments and community leaders by gathering and disseminating pertinent information. We keep local officials informed of federal and state programs, including complex environmental rules, funding opportunities and performance requirements.
We conduct, sponsor and assist with special training workshops, town hall meetings and public hearings. We respond to information inquiries, facilitate information exchanges and maintain libraries of data, planning documents and fundraising applications.
Whether working statewide through the Oklahoma Association of Regional Councils, partnering with neighboring regions and governments or working individually, our regional councils are implementing a diverse portfolio of programs and initiatives to advance the economic and community interests of the state.