HELLO, WE ARE THE EAST TEXAS COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS
NEWS, EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
Nominations are Due by Tuesday, February 10, 2026
ETCOG is sharing Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) updates affecting its policies and manuals, and a webinar offering an overview of new forms in its grant management tool. Policy Issuance 25-01, and revision of the 2025 TxCDBG Implementation Manual Revisions for clarity in Chapter 5 Procurement Procedures and Chapter 8 Force Account Labor. New guidance in Chapter 1, Administration and Reporting, for state public hearing requirements. New guidance in Chapter 2, Financial Management, for changes to the timing of disbursement documentation requirements. New guidance in Chapter 4, Contract Special Conditions for federal requirements. Policy Issuance 25-01 is effective January 1, 2026. Policy Issuance 25-01 can be found on the TDA website. The same revisions have been incorporated into the 2025 Implementation Manual chapters posted to the TDA website, marked in blue text. Updates to TDA-GO & Webinar TDA has prepared several new forms that include grant management tools. TDA has scheduled a webinar to walk through these tools and will provide additional resources as needed: WEBINAR: CDBG Over Coffee: New TDA-GO Financial Management Tools webinar January 22, 2026 Fund Source Calculator This tool calculates the total maximum grant amount and minimum matching funds amount based on actual project costs. The form pulls data entered in TDA-GO as project cost obligations (from Materials and Services Reports) and expenditures (from Payment Requests), as well as the grant agreement funding amounts and match ratio commitment. Written guidance - How to use the Fund Source Calculator - can be found on the TDA website. Disbursement of Funds documentation A new form in TDA-GO collects bank records and cancelled checks to document disbursement of funds throughout the grant agreement period. These records are currently required for during the closeout monitoring process and can be a challenge for some communities to collect and organize. Disbursement records will be required promptly after each grant payment is issued. Written guidance - How to Enter Disbursement Detail - can be found on the TDA website. For existing grants ending on or after March 1, 2026, Grant Recipients should begin uploading documentation for previously approved Payment Requests. TDA will begin holding Payment Requests for grants that have not yet provided this documentation on March 1, 2026 .
The East Texas Council of Governments (ETCOG) has announced a significant step in expanding broadband access for one of its member communities in East Texas. The City of Lakeport has been awarded $200,000 in grant funding from the Federal Communications Commission under the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund program to improve broadband access in underserved and unserved areas of the community. ETCOG collaborated with City of Lakeport leadership to seek broadband partners and helped secure Zito West Holding, LLC to expand reliable, high-speed internet service for local residents. The partnership brings together local leadership, a private broadband provider, and regional planning assistance to strengthen digital access throughout the city. Through this initiative, Zito will construct a new fiber-to-the-home network designed to serve approximately 190 homes in Lakeport. Zito currently provides fiber service to 348 homes in the city. The expanded network will offer upload and download speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second. Construction began on December 15 th . “The City of Lakeport sincerely appreciates its partnership with the East Texas Council of Governments (ETCOG) in the effort to acquire broadband internet access for our community. Through ETCOG’s leadership, technical expertise, and support in navigating funding and planning opportunities, Lakeport has been able to move forward with expanding reliable broadband services. This partnership strengthens our ability to support local businesses, enhance educational opportunities, improve access to healthcare, and promote long-term economic growth. The City of Lakeport values ETCOG’s continued collaboration and commitment to improving connectivity for communities across East Texas,” said Mayor Johnny Sammons. “This project demonstrates how planning and partnerships can bring reliable broadband to communities across East Texas,” said David Cleveland, Executive Director of ETCOG. “We’re proud to support Lakeport in connecting residents and businesses to essential digital services.”
