Stanly County slated to receive $12 million from latest stimulus package
With President Biden having passed a landmark $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package last week, help is coming for people who have been struggling as a result of the pandemic.
Some of the highlights of the package include: monthly $1,400 checks to individuals making less than $75,000, $300 per week in federal unemployment benefits, which run through Labor Day, monthly child-credit payments of $250 to $300 beginning this summer, money to help schools reopen and funds to help in distributing the vaccine.
The bill, known as the American Rescue Plan, also includes an improved child tax credit. Families are also set to receive $3,000 per child (up from $2,000) and $3,600 for children under the age of 6.
There’s $350 billion reserved to help state and local governments. North Carolina is scheduled to receive nearly $9 billion aid for state government ($5.2 billion), metro cities ($672 million), other non-county governments ($682 million) and county governments ($2 billion) as well as $277 million for capital projects.
Stanly County is slated to receive $12.18 million, though there’s no specific timetable on when it will arrive, County Manager Andy Lucas said.
The county is supposed to receive 50 percent of the total — roughly $6.1 million — within 60 days of the enactment of the bill, which was signed March 11, Lucas said. He anticipates the county will receive the funds by late May, if not earlier.
The funds have to be used for certain purposes, Lucas said, including investing in water, sewer and broadband infrastructure; providing premium pay for essential workers (can’t exceed $13 per hour or $25,000 per worker); and providing government services affected by a revenue reduction due to COVID-19.
Funds can also be used to help mitigate the pandemic, such as bolstering the vaccination infrastructure and helping households, small businesses and nonprofits that have struggled over the past year.
Stanly will not receive the second allotment of the total $12 million until at least 12 months after it receives the first allotment, Lucas said. All the money has to be spent by Dec. 31 2024.
“Our board will sit down and have a conversation about what their priorities are for spending that money,” Lucas said, noting that a good portion of the funds will be set aside for public health.
The $12 million scheduled for Stanly is much more than what the county received through the CARES Act last year, which was about $2.2 million.
Each of the nine municipalities will also receive funds, though the money is not tied with the $12 million that the county will receive.
The following are estimated amounts:
- Albemarle – $4.75 million
- Locust – $950,000
- Norwood – $720,000
- Badin – $580,000
- Oakboro – $560,000
- Stanfield – $450,000
- Misenheimer – $220,000
- Red Cross – $220,o0o
- New London – $210,000
- Richfield – $180,000