Effingham County to Replace Shelby as Montgomery County Transit Grantee

Montgomery County Board Meeting | June 9, 2026

Article Summary: The Montgomery County Board on June 9 rescinded a February ordinance and intergovernmental agreement naming Shelby County as the grant agent for public transportation and approved replacements naming Effingham County, which has agreed to administer the service area for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026.

Public Transit Grantee Key Points:

• The board rescinded the Feb. 10, 2026, CIPT ordinance and intergovernmental agreement with Shelby County.
• It approved a new CIPT ordinance and intergovernmental agreement with Effingham County; all were in favor on each of the four motions.
• Effingham County will serve as grant recipient for public transportation in Montgomery County for fiscal year 2027, July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027.
• C.E.F.S. Economic Opportunity Corporation remains the service provider under the agreement.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY — The Montgomery County Board on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, took four separate votes to move the county’s public transportation grant administration from Shelby County to Effingham County, all of them unanimous.

Board Chairman Doug Donaldson, reporting for the Coordinating Committee, moved to rescind the February 10, 2026, CIPT ordinance with Shelby County, seconded by Chad Ruppert; and to rescind the February 10, 2026, CIPT intergovernmental agreement with Shelby County, seconded by Mark Hughes. He then moved to approve the CIPT ordinance with Effingham County, seconded by Russell Beason, and the CIPT intergovernmental agreement with Effingham County, seconded by Connie Beck. Copies of the new documents were directed to Resolution Book 23, pages 286-288.

The change had been flagged earlier in the meeting. Under liaison reports, Beason, the board’s representative to the CEFS Board, reminded members they would be asked to replace Shelby County with Effingham County as CIPT grant agent later in the meeting.

The board packet contains a May 20 email to the county clerk and board chairman from Beth Beck-Marts, transportation program director for C.E.F.S. Economic Opportunity Corporation in Effingham, stating that Effingham County has agreed to be the grantee for the service area that previously was administered by Shelby County, and that the change would require Montgomery Board action at the June 9 meeting. The email lists the four votes the board ultimately took.

The ordinance in the packet is titled “An Ordinance To Provide For Public Transportation In Montgomery County, Illinois” for fiscal year 2027, beginning July 1, 2026, and ending June 30, 2027. It cites Article 13, Section 7 of the Illinois Constitution and 740/2-1 et seq. of the Illinois Compiled Statutes, and provides that Effingham County will serve as grant recipient and provide public transportation within the county limits. The county clerk is directed to file a certified copy within 60 days of passage.

The intergovernmental agreement is between Effingham County and Christian, Clay, Fayette, Montgomery, Moultrie and Shelby counties. It designates Effingham as the “Primary Participant” under Illinois Department of Transportation regulations for public transportation assistance in non-urbanized areas, responsible for receiving Section 5311 funds from IDOT and disbursing them to C.E.F.S. Economic Opportunity Corporation, a not-for-profit corporation identified as the service provider.

Participants are not responsible to the service provider for local matching funds but are encouraged to provide match as opportunity presents, the agreement states. Its term runs the same July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027, grant fiscal year and is submitted for approval annually. The agreement is contingent on Effingham County accepting responsibility as primary grant participant; should the Effingham County Board decline, the agreement is null and void.

The agreement also calls for the primary participant to provide program updates on a regular basis, encourages participants to attend quarterly meetings, and requires the operator to provide monthly county service reports to the county clerk or another designated county representative.

Beck-Marts wrote that a CEFS representative would attend the June meeting to answer questions. The minutes do not record any questions or discussion on the item.