COVID relief fund bills headed for final vote in Alabama Legislature

Brian Lyman, Montgomery Advertiser
·1 min read
The special session on COVID relief money is held in the senate chamber at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Ala., on Tuesday January 25, 2022.
The special session on COVID relief money is held in the senate chamber at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Ala., on Tuesday January 25, 2022.

A plan to spend $774 million in federal COVID aid appears ready for final approval in the Alabama Legislature.

A House committee Wednesday approved a version of bill allocating the state's share of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money. Legislators could send the legislation to Gov. Kay Ivey as soon as Thursday.

The bills would allocate $276.9 million (35%) to broadband and supporting services; $225 million (29%) to water and sewer projects, and $146.8 million (19%) to health care, including hospitals and assisted facilities.

Legislators also plan to put $79.5 million in the state's unemployment trust fund, which could reduce an average tax on businesses that puts money in the fund from 1.54% to 1.1%. The state has a Jan. 31 deadline to do so, a reason why legislators are trying to wrap up the special session this week.

The bills would also allocate money to emergency responders, telemedicine, and counties to compensate them for housing state inmates.

More: Alabama COVID spending plan gets first approval in Alabama Legislature

The House and the Senate passed the bills by overwhelming margins on Tuesday, with only one no vote cast in each chamber. Legislative leaders want to finish the special session by Thursday, with a goal of resuming the regular session next week.

Alabama will get another $1 billion in federal aid later this spring.

Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Brian Lyman at 334-240-0185 or blyman@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Alabama Legislature nearing final vote on COVID relief funds