Stone County Begins CARES Act Funding Distribution
July 8, 2020
Isaac Estes-Jones
Stone County has distributed applications from taxing entities and nursing homes in its first phase of distributing funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), said Sheila Thomas, President/CEO of Table Rock Lake Chamber of Commerce. The county commission contracted with the Chamber to manage the funds distribution process.
The County Commission made the decision to open the first phase of applications to nursing homes in addition to taxing entities because, “We felt it was important to include nursing homes; that was a necessity,” said Mark Maples, Stone County Presiding Commissioner.
The CARES Act, signed into federal law on March 27, 2020, established the Coronavirus Relief Fund. Money was distributed to the states and Missouri subsequently allotted a portion to counties. Stone County received $3.7 million and is working on distributing funds to eligible entities.
Under the CARES Act, the funds are to be used to make payments for specified uses. Generally, the CARES Act provides that payments may only be used to cover costs that: (1) are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to COVID-19; (2) were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020, for the government; and (3) were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 30, 2020. The funds cannot be used to replace lost revenue. There are other requirements and additional guidance has been issued by the U.S. Treasury.
In Phase I of the county’s plan, eligible taxing entities must meet the following criteria: 1) the tax district must be wholly located with the county’s physical borders; or 2) the tax district’s headquarters must be located within the county’s physical borders.
“Eligible entities have been mailed an application packet with all necessary documents and the application is also available to them online,” Thomas said. The deadline for Phase I applications is August 14, 2020. Guidance on the CARES Act was updated after the packets were mailed out last week, so that extra information was sent out to the first pool of applicants.
The Chamber will review the applications for completeness (including supporting documentation) and a panel of community members will review the applications for compliance with the CARES Act requirements and Treasury guidance. The committee will make recommendations to the county commission, which will ultimately have the final authority to approve reimbursements from the fund.
On Tuesday, July 7, the County Commission approved a four-member committee to make the recommendations to the commission. This panel will include Danny Humble, superintendent of Galena School District; Monica Mueller, community health specialist with the Stone County Health Department; Dwayne Falk, president of Table Rock Community Bank; and Devin Fisher, key accounts and economic development specialist with White River Valley Electric Cooperative.
Thomas said work continues on additional phases of the county’s plan and announcements should be coming soon. It is likely that the next phase will be open to non-profit organizations beginning sometime in August.
Stone County has distributed applications from taxing entities and nursing homes in its first phase of distributing funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), said Sheila Thomas, President/CEO of Table Rock Lake Chamber of Commerce. The county commission contracted with the Chamber to manage the funds distribution process.
The County Commission made the decision to open the first phase of applications to nursing homes in addition to taxing entities because, “We felt it was important to include nursing homes; that was a necessity,” said Mark Maples, Stone County Presiding Commissioner.
The CARES Act, signed into federal law on March 27, 2020, established the Coronavirus Relief Fund. Money was distributed to the states and Missouri subsequently allotted a portion to counties. Stone County received $3.7 million and is working on distributing funds to eligible entities.
Under the CARES Act, the funds are to be used to make payments for specified uses. Generally, the CARES Act provides that payments may only be used to cover costs that: (1) are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to COVID-19; (2) were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020, for the government; and (3) were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 30, 2020. The funds cannot be used to replace lost revenue. There are other requirements and additional guidance has been issued by the U.S. Treasury.
In Phase I of the county’s plan, eligible taxing entities must meet the following criteria: 1) the tax district must be wholly located with the county’s physical borders; or 2) the tax district’s headquarters must be located within the county’s physical borders.
“Eligible entities have been mailed an application packet with all necessary documents and the application is also available to them online,” Thomas said. The deadline for Phase I applications is August 14, 2020. Guidance on the CARES Act was updated after the packets were mailed out last week, so that extra information was sent out to the first pool of applicants.
The Chamber will review the applications for completeness (including supporting documentation) and a panel of community members will review the applications for compliance with the CARES Act requirements and Treasury guidance. The committee will make recommendations to the county commission, which will ultimately have the final authority to approve reimbursements from the fund.
On Tuesday, July 7, the County Commission approved a four-member committee to make the recommendations to the commission. This panel will include Danny Humble, superintendent of Galena School District; Monica Mueller, community health specialist with the Stone County Health Department; Dwayne Falk, president of Table Rock Community Bank; and Devin Fisher, key accounts and economic development specialist with White River Valley Electric Cooperative.
Thomas said work continues on additional phases of the county’s plan and announcements should be coming soon. It is likely that the next phase will be open to non-profit organizations beginning sometime in August.