COLUMBIA – $350 billion has been handed down to state, county, local and tribal governments across the United States.
The money came from the American Rescue Plan Act, which was signed into law on March 11. Now, local officials must decide how to spend the money.
"I think that we'll be very thoughtful and intentional about it and working with council," Jefferson City Mayor Carrie Tergin said.
Tergin said there is no plan yet for Jefferson City's allotment, which was estimated at $7.64 million by the Missouri Budget Project.
The first payments for cities with a population of more than 50,000 people were delivered last month. Cities with a population of less than 50,000 will receive their money from their respective state.
The new funds are separate from CARES Act funding sent out in 2020. Money from the American Rescue Plan can be put to a greater amount of uses, but guidance from the US Department of Treasury is still evolving.
Columbia Mayor Brian Treece presented a proposal at a budget work session on May 26.
"There are different parameters for this money, and I have tried to cultivate some ideas both from members of council, but also from the community as to how we can use some of these funds," Treece said in his May presentation.
Treece's plan outlined a vision for nearly $19 million of the city's $25.2 million expected allotment from the American Rescue Plan. The city received slightly more than $12 million in May, and will receive the other half in May of 2022.
Treece's plan included:
- Sidewalk improvements
- A rapid access treatment center and behavioral health responders
- A workforce development initiative
- Stormwater projects
- A new emergency shelter
- Improved broadband infrastructure
A website from the treasury department outlines these intended goals for the funds.
The department's goals include:
- Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic
- Replenishing lost revenue
- Economic security for households and businesses
- Responding to systemic inequalities created by the pandemic
Traci Wilson-Kleekamp, president of Race Matters, Friends, believes Mayor Treece's plan was announced too soon and without proper community input. She said some of the funds should go toward preventing community violence and the needs of victims of violent crime.
"I think that the mayor put the cart before the horse," she said. "I think this is the people process. And he's always championing doing transparency, but he's violating it himself."
Wilson-Kleekamp also said the city should weigh the latest census data from 2020 to better respond to inequalities.
"The census, in tandem with the American Rescue Plan, are pivotal to each other," Wilson-Kleekamp said. "They are siblings in the practice of disrupting structural inequality."
In a statement to KOMU 8 News Mayor Treece said, "We have an opportunity to use these limited, one-time funds for catalytic investments to address the economic disparities exposed by the pandemic, support workforce development and stimulate economic activity. My plan makes strategic investments in broadband, job training, infrastructure, homeless, mental health and emergency services to provide the greatest benefit to the greatest number of people."
Wilson-Kleekamp said the Mayor's plan does not address other opportunities for investments, including gun violence prevention, implementing the climate action plan and providing subsidies for childcare or those with lost income facing a possible eviction, with heightened fears of an eviction moratorium that expires on June 30.
"I would like him to resist the urge to not always do what he wants first, and to come to the community first, because that's his job to listen to the constituency," Wilson-Kleekamp said.
Treece's presentation is publicly available.
For Jefferson City Mayor Carrie Tergin, she said maintaining transparency has been key to the process.
"Every time we discussed this, it is very out in the public and open and we always welcome input through public comment or people contacting council members as well," she said. "I think having conversations together with the city and the county is important so that we may find some coordinated efforts, too."
Columbia's Ward 4 council member Ian Thomas said he supports much of the mayor's plan, but emphasized city council is in no rush to deliberate.
"I hope that we can have a reasonably extended process to discuss this and not rush to a decision, you know, within the next few weeks," Thomas said. "We are having some kind of a work session at the next council meeting on June 21."
"use" - Google News
June 07, 2021 at 06:45AM
https://ift.tt/3uY1rBA
Missouri cities debate how to use American Rescue Plan funds - KOMU 8
"use" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2P05tHQ
https://ift.tt/2YCP29R
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Missouri cities debate how to use American Rescue Plan funds - KOMU 8"
Post a Comment