County COVID purchases will outlast the virus
Mar. 3—Nearly a year after the act's introduction, Calhoun County has been able to make use of just under half its eligible funding under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
About $125 million was set aside by the state for county use after the act was passed by the federal government in March 2020. According to data from the Alabama Department of Finance, by November hardly any of the money had been used. Only about $6.9 million had been spent, a light figure compared to expenses surrounding the outbreak of the pandemic, including employee overtime, personal protective equipment, disinfectant and the dozens of other costs created by the spread of COVID-19. Leaders of local government told The Star in October that strict rules about eligible expenses left them without much they could buy, once disinfectant and PPE had been purchased.
As of March 2, DOF records show, Calhoun has claimed $1.45 million of its $3.14 million allocation, money that has been used to meet over $1 million in payroll expenses, along with workplace safety preparation and other precautionary costs.
Assistant county administrator Melissia Wood said Wednesday that changes in spending eligibility over the course of the act's eight-month duration, which ended Dec. 30, made the difference for Calhoun County.
"There were a lot of stipulations about what was a valid expenditure," Wood said. "It was a work in progress from the beginning."
Early on, purchases that were most clearly supported by the program included cleaning supplies and PPE — about $60,000 and $13,500, respectively, in Calhoun County — and a mandated 80 hours of sick leave and enhanced Family and Medical Leave Act coverage. Those costs were reimbursable, so the county had to spend the money and hope it would be covered by CARES.
The county also received money for state Department of Corrections inmates who were housed in the county jail but couldn't be transported to state facilities. The Secretary of State's office also used CARES money to streamline election safety. Wood said 235 plexiglass barriers were bought for election purposes, allowing some protection between poll workers and voters in election season.
"It made them feel so much safer," she said.
A few relatively minor reimbursement requests were denied, Wood said, but many of the county's purchases made the cut. Shortly before the cutoff date, the Calhoun County Emergency Management Agency was able to get approval for equipment that is still being used at testing and vaccination sites.
"We were able to get a lot of equipment for the EMA, and some equipment for teleworking that allows them to be off-site and still connect to everything," Wood said.
The county was also able to secure a new pickup truck for EMA use.
"That's been a tremendous help for hauling supplies to vaccination sites," Wood said.
Like the truck, much of what the county has purchased will still be useful even after the pandemic, Wood explained. The generators, tents, tables and chairs used for testing and vaccination sites can be put to use in future events not related to COVID, along with the traffic control supplies like cones, barricades and rails that are used to guide vehicles through those sites. There's some overlap from COVID management to more general emergencies, like outbreaks of bad weather.
"The EMA will keep making use of them down the road for as long as they're useful," Wood said.
Assistant Metro Editor Ben Nunnally: 256-235-3560.
