At their February Monthly Meeting, the Civic League for New Castle County unanimously approved a motion to support R21-030 and will be speaking in favor at the public hearing on Tuesday, February 23rd.
NEW CASTLE COUNTY COUNCIL
Administrative-Finance Committee
February 23, 2021 - 4:30 p.m.
*Virtual Zoom Webinar Meeting Agenda*
The link to join the meeting via computer, smart device, or smart phone is: https://zoom.us/j/377322142 Meeting materials, including a meeting agenda, legislation to be addressed during the meeting, and other materials related to the meeting are electronically accessible at https://nccde.org/AgendaCenter/County-Council-1
Agenda III: R21-030: IDENTIFYING A PROCESS AND FOCUS FOR FEDERAL FUNDS TO BE RECEIVED BY NEW CASTLE COUNTY UPON THE EXPECTED PASSAGE OF FY2021 RECONCILIATION ACT TO ENSURE RESPONSIBLE FISCAL OVERSIGHT AND TO ENSURE THAT DISCRETIONARY FUNDING DECISIONS PRIORITIZE THE NEEDS OF UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES MOST IMPACTED BY COVID-19. Introduced by: Mr. Carter, Mr. Hollins
WHEREAS, an initial estimate is that the Reconciliation Act, as currently proposed, will provide approximately $109,213,650 to New Castle County based on the formula for allocation recently calculated by policy staff from the National Association of Counties; and
WHEREAS, the Reconciliation Act, as proposed, would allow for funds to be used to:
1. Respond to or mitigate the public health emergency with respect to the COVID-19 emergency or its negative economic impacts.
2. Cover costs incurred as a result of the COVID-19 emergency.
3. Replace revenue that was lost, delayed or decreased as determined based on projections of the government as of January 27, 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 emergency.
4. Address negative economic impacts of the COVID-19 disease; and
WHEREAS, if the Reconciliation Act is passed, New Castle County will be eligible to receive these funds upon providing the U.S. Treasury with a certification on the use and need of the funds; and
WHEREAS, the social and economic impacts of COVID-19 have disproportionally impacted communities on the lower end of our economic scale, and despite good faith efforts, the delivery of funds under the CARES Act have demonstrated the challenge of having these resources reach many of our most impacted communities, leading to concerns about who has been left out; and
WHEREAS, as currently contemplated the State and Local Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Funds have no deadline associated with expending these funds, thus allowing adequate time to thoughtfully develop a strategy to deliver these funds to communities most in need; and
WHEREAS, a thoughtful strategy will ensure that New Castle County has adequate funds to provide continued testing, vaccination, and other health-related programs needed to fight the ongoing pandemic, to restore costs incurred due to COVID-19, and to replace lost revenue resulting from County efforts and programs to provide needed tax relief to burdened citizens, loss of hotel tax revenue, and other lost revenue streams; and
WHEREAS, a thoughtful expenditure strategy should also allocate significant funds to directly address the needs of the communities hardest hit by the pandemic, and help revitalize and rebuild underserved and struggling communities in our County, including residents in declining suburban areas, our rural communities, and in our municipalities; and
WHEREAS, a thoughtful strategy to allocate funds to communities most impacted could provide funds to significantly expand youth employment programs, housing programs, home repair programs, improvements in social service programs, increased broadband access, and many other needed actions that would mitigate against the current impacts of COVID-19 and build resiliency to strengthen the communities against future crises that disproportionally affect low-income communities; and
WHEREAS, Council Members are deeply involved in their communities and provide a strong voice to identify the specific needs of low-income communities, and should be a strong voice in the development of programs to strengthen these communities.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by and for the County Council of New Castle County that the County Council hereby intends to be an active participant in developing the County’s strategy for the expenditure of any State and Local Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Funds distributed to New Castle County; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council will work with the Administration on the development and implementation of a comprehensive strategy for the most effective use of these funds and will carefully consider the needs of underserved communities that may be given significant relief through a bold strategy associated with this unique funding opportunity; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council also expressly intends that discretionary decisionmaking of funding allocations from the State and Local Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Funds, beyond reimbursement of lost County revenue and direct costs of the fight against COVID-19, be considered through a lens of advancing equity and social justice throughout New Castle County; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council shall also require that the allocation of funds from the State and Local Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Funds shall be pursuant to legislative action by Council, a co-equal branch of County Government with the Administration, before any expenditure and that each legislative appropriation include a clear description of how the funds will be expended.
Resolution 21-030 will be voted on at the council's regular evening meeting:
February 23, 2021 6:30 p.m.
The link to join the meeting via computer, smart device, or smart phone is: https://zoom.us/j/377322142
