Well, here’s the list . . . look what has been flagged as ineligible.TO: Legislators Who Represent Dane County
FROM: Bob Lang, Director
SUBJECT: Dane County’s Planned Uses of Coronavirus Relief Fund Allocation
At the request of some legislators who represent Dane County, this memorandum provides information on the planned uses of the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) monies received by Dane County. Under the CARES Act, Dane County received $95.4 million directly from the CRF. The County is also eligible to receive up to $8.7 million from the CRF money received by the state, under the Routes to Recovery Grant program.
As of its last meeting (June 18, 2020), the Dane County Board has approved the expenditure of approximately $52.5 million of its CRF allocation. In addition, the Finance Division of the County Department of Administration has laid out proposed uses for an additional $12.3 million in future initiatives, as well as $35.1 million in expected internal county expenditures. These uses are summarized in the table attached to this memorandum.
The CARES Act laid out certain guidelines for the use of money received from the CRF, and additional guidance has been subsequently received from the U.S. Department of Treasury. Money that state and local governments receive from the CRF must be used for expenses incurred in response to the public health emergency declared in response to COVID-19. These expenses must not have been accounted for in the most recently passed budget, and must be incurred between March 1, 2020, and December 30, 2020. Furthermore, Treasury has issued guidance and provided answers to questions on what is and is not considered an eligible expense incurred in response to the public health emergency; notably, governments may not use the money from the CRF to replace lost revenue.
Approximately $33.8 million of Dane County’s planned uses of the funds it received from the CRF are currently allocated for purposes that would not be allowable under the Department of Treasury’s current guidelines. Dane County has allocated approximately $10 million for use in 2021 and approximately $23.8 million for revenue replacement. The County has indicated that it is hopeful that Treasury will amend its guidelines in order to allow such uses of funds received from the CRF. According to guidance received from the Department of Treasury, governments will be required to return funds to the Treasury if the funds are deemed to have been improperly expended, or if the funds have not been expended by December 30, 2020. Some Treasury officials have indicated that the Department may update its guidance to allow governments to use funds received from the CRF to replace lost revenue. However, the most recently issued guidance, dated June 24, 2020, does not allow for this use, and there has been no official indication from the Department of Treasury of any intent to allow governments to use CRF monies to replace lost revenue. The requirement that governments fully expend the funds by December 30, 2020, is written into the text of the CARES Act, and is therefore unlikely to be amended by Treasury.
This office will continue to monitor guidelines from the Treasury on use of the CRF monies and will notify you of any modifications that would affect the information provided in this memorandum.
Dane County CRF Allocation (*Ineligible under current Treasury guidelines)
Current Initiatives
Second Harvest Food Pantry Contract $6,000,000
Community Supported Agriculture; Partner Shares 45,458
Artist Support, Cultural Affairs 100,000
Boys and Girls Club Social Distancing Promotion 10,000
Dane Buy Local (Business Assistance) 10,800,000
PPE, Equipment, and Testing 3,048,956
Homeless Hotel Housing 15,000,000
Child Care Center Assistance 3,500,000
Eviction Prevention 10,016,000
At Risk Families Wrap Around 200,000
Eviction Prevention (JFF) 500,000
Housing Navigators 240,000
Housing Move In Funds 150,000
Human Services Department LTE Funds 170,000
Provision of Services Agency Assistance 2,000,000
Public Health Staff 445,000
Public Health Quarantine Funds 250,000
Sub-Total $52,475,414
Pending Future Initiatives
Extension of Second Harvest Contract $2,000,000
Homeless Hotel Housing, January through June 2021* 9,000,000
Public Health Positions, 2021 Funding* 762,857
Badger Prairie Needs Network-Expand Coolers 320,877
Public Health Quarantine Funds, 2021* 250,000
Sub-Total $12,333,734
Internal County Expenses
PPE, Other Equipment $3,500,000
Info Management Equipment for Telework 1,750,000
Public Health Rent, Alliant Energy Center 1,750,000
Second Harvest Occupancy Costs, Alliant Energy Center 220,000
No Touch Fixtures, County Facilities 300,000
Medical Examiner, CT Scan Equipment 800,000
Second Harvest Trailers 45,000
Disinfectant Equipment, Sheriff Skytron 155,000
Public Health Testing 1,750,000
County Overtime and COVID Leave 1,000,000
Revenue Replacement* 23,848,515
Sub-Total $35,118,515
Total $99,927,663
