LEGISLATURE STUFF - Delighted to Dispense More Dough

CATSKILL - There was rare pleasure taken in spending more money when the Greene County Legislature recently approved their portion of the 2025/26 Columbia-Greene Community College budget.

Lawmakers collectively said “yes” to an increase of $5,363 from a year ago, dividing with neighboring Columbia County a total sponsor share of $6,448,250 (representing an unchanged bottom line from 2025).

Greene County will shell out $3,049,817 in 2026 compared to $3,044,454 in 2025, while Columbia County needs to fork over $3,398,533 in 2026, going down the exact same total Greene County went up.

While stopping short of expressing jubilation about the upward fiscal movement, legislature chairman Patrick Linger was tickled pink.

The two counties pay an amount based on the number of students attending the school from this or that side of the Hudson River.

“We’re paying more but that means we have more students making the commitment which is very good news,” Linger says.

Lawmakers were similarly giddy about continuing their financial support of the Columbia-Greene Community College Foundation.

Affectionately known as the ‘Greene County Cares Fund,” the dollars, “will aid Greene County residents as follows,” the legislative resolution states:

“This funding is to assist Greene County students with college expenses,

including tuition, transportation and other miscellaneous fees,” the resolution states.

“These funds will be placed into the "Greene County Cares Fund", solely for the benefit of the Greene County students,” the resolution states.

The aid program applies to “recent high school graduates, non-traditional students and adult learners seeking to improve their lives by earning a degree or a certificate,” the resolution states.

Those getting funds are, “ineligible for financial aid, and/or need additional assistance beyond federal financial aid,” the resolution states.

“This fund also will assist those students seeking to enrich their lives by enrolling in non-credit classes,” the resolution states.

Greene County dedicates $100,000 annually to the program, administered by the CGCC Foundation which provides quarterly updates and a yearly report to lawmakers detailing distribution of the money.

Any unexpended funds remaining at the end of the year are rolled over into the ensuing academic year, the legislative resolution states.

“We get many testimonial thank-you’s from these students, letting us know this helps keep them in school,” county administrator Shaun Groden says.

Anticipated revenues in the overall Operating Budget fell from $20,292,283 to $19,793,532, but expenditures were a mirror image, dropping to $19,793,532 from $20,292,283, the CGCC numbers show.

In another matter related to education, lawmakers have established (and amended) a Paramedic Candidate Training Award.

Efforts are underway, after two years of discussion between county and municipal leaders and emergency services professionals, to potentially create a countywide ambulance system.

An industrywide shortage of personnel is a key issue and recognizing that reality, county officials are taking the proverbial bull by the horns.

“Training available to a workforce pipeline has been identified as a potential barrier for candidates to enter the field,” a legislative resolution states.

“The Greene County Legislature already provides funding to the Greene County EMS Council for the training of EMT’s,” the resolution states.

“The Greene County Legislature has recognized that the cost of training may be a barrier to candidates wanting to become certified as a paramedic,” the resolution states.

Lawmakers will therefore “make 20 Paramedic Candidate Training Awards up to $14,500 each available to candidates,” who must meet a set of eligibility criteria, the resolution states.

Recipients of the Training Award will sign a binding agreement that upon completion of the schooling, they will actively serve as a paramedic in Greene County for at least four years, the resolution states.

If they do not keep their end of the bargain, recipients shall reimburse Greene County for the cost of the award on a pro-rated basis, the legislative resolution states.