State officials encourage creative use of new COVID-19 relief dollars for infrastructure, broadband
By Steven Allen Adams, The Weirton Daily Times
CHARLESTON, W.Va — With an influx of COVID-19 relief dollars flowing into state, county and city coffers that can be used for specific infrastructure improvements, elected officials and lawmakers in West Virginia are working to properly spend these funds.
West Virginia received the first half of $1.355 billion last week from the American Rescue Plan proposed by President Joe Biden and passed by Congress in March. That’s not counting the $679 million in funding for counties, cities and towns.
The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan was just the latest COVID-19 relief package, including the $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. Unlike the C.A.R.E.S. Act, which was limited strictly to coronavirus-related expenses during the pandemic, the American Rescue Plan can be used for water, wastewater, and broadband infrastructure projects.
For the C.A.R.E.S. Act, the state was responsible for distributing part of the $1.25 billion to counties and cities for their COVID-19 expenses. In the American Rescue Plan, the funds were sent directly to all 55 counties and all cities and towns based on population. In many cases, the funds are some of the largest one-time federal dollars these communities have ever seen…
To read more: https://www.weirtondailytimes.com/news/local-news/2021/05/w-va-benefits-from-american-rescue-plan-funding/
