On Sept. 29, Sen. Robert Nichols (R-Jacksonville) submitted a letter to Senate Finance Committee Chair Jane Nelson (R-Flower Mound) requesting that she work with state leaders to review and eliminate restrictive policies governing the use of CARES Act funding for counties with populations less than 500,000.
Under Gov. Greg Abbott’s CARES Act funding policy, cities and counties under 500,000 have received 20% of the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) money appropriated by Congress, leaving $450 million to be distributed via reimbursements. That process requires counties to spend 75% of their allotment on medical, public health or payroll dedicated to “public emergency” expenses. Funding has been authorized for eligible expenditures incurred between March 1, 2020 and December 30, 2020. Counties are deliberately evaluating appropriate ways to responsibly allocate the funds.
Counties may consider reaching out to their legislators to ask them to send a similar letter to the appropriate committee: Senate Finance or House Appropriations.
For additional information on this article, contact Rick Thompson.