Texas Review and Comment

The TRACS process originated with the Federal Office of Management and Budget Circular A-95, which established clearinghouse for grant application review in each state. In Texas, the 24 planning commissions were designated to serve this function. Executive Order 12372, issued in 1982 by President Reagan, delegated control over the process to the respective states. In Texas, Article 1011m of the Texas Civil Statutes requires that applicants for state and/or federal assistance submit their applications for review to the appropriate regional planning agency(s) and directs the governor to issue guidelines for carrying out such reviews. The resulting Texas Review and Comment System is our instrument for complying with these regulations.

When an applicant is instructed by the funding agency to submit a proposal to the Panhandle Regional Planning Commission for review under the TRACS system, PRPC assigns the application to a staff member for review. The staff member becomes familiar with the application and presents it to the PRPC Board of Directors who is responsible for reviewing these applications and providing their comments to the funding agency at their monthly Board meetings. A representative of the agency or institution presenting the proposal is encouraged to attend the Board of Directors meeting to answer any questions the Board may have for the applicant. Most applicants make a short presentation to introduce their agency or project. When comment is offered, PRPC provides the applicant with a letter delineating that comment for their use and reports the comment to the Single Point of Contact at the Office of the Governor. The TRACS system provides local officials the opportunity to review and make comment on various plans, grant proposals and funding applications impacting their jurisdictions. Funding agencies often use the TRACS comments to assist in making planning decisions.

An application submitted for TRACS review must be received by the first Thursday of the month in order to be reviewed by the PRPC Board of Directors that same month (the Board meets the fourth Thursday of every month).

• Texas Review and Comment

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• Texas Revenue Recovery Association

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