Agencies given more time to use covid-relief cash

$41.9M remains to divvy up

A state panel on Tuesday extended the deadline until March 30 for several state agencies to collectively spend about $30 million in federal coronavirus relief funds and until June 15 for two agencies to spend about $40 million.

The state has about $41.9 million in federal coronavirus relief funds that have yet to be allocated to state agencies, said Department of Finance and Administration Secretary Larry Walther.

The state received $1.25 billion under the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act enacted by Congress and President Donald Trump in March. Gov. Asa Hutchinson appointed a 15-member steering committee to recommend the best uses of these funds.

In December, Congress and Trump extended the deadline for states to spend their 2020 federal coronavirus relief funds from Dec. 30, 2020, through the end of this year.

The state's CARES Act steering committee on Tuesday voted to give until June 15 for the state Department of Commerce and the Department of Human Services to spend about $40 million in the funds.

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That would extend the deadline for the Commerce Department to spend $31.9 million on the Arkansas Rural Connect broadband grant program and $4.3 million on that program's administrative costs.

The Human Services Department would spend $2.2 million on community outreach investment grants and $2.2 million on crisis stabilization units and veterans mental health grants.

So far, the Arkansas Rural Connect broadband grant program has made 60 awards totaling $86 million, Commerce spokeswoman Alisha Curtis said afterwards.

The steering committee on Tuesday also voted to extend the deadline until March 30 for other agencies:

• Department of Health, $10 million on testing, contact tracing, and personal protective equipment at the state's higher education institutions, and $3.6 million through the Northwest Arkansas Council Health Transformation Division for testing, contact tracing and case management for Hispanic and Marshallese populations.

• Commerce Department, $4.9 million for an unemployment call center contract with Maximus.

• Arkansas' PBS to spend $3.3 million for universal broadcast coverage.

The steering committee also endorsed a written request from Sen. Gary Stubblefield, R-Branch, for the Human Services Department to use $1 million to reimburse expenses of senior citizens centers. Stubblefield's request is supported by 16 other state senators, House Speaker Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, and Rep. Jeff Wardlaw, R-Hermitage, according to his letter.

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