On Monday, county administrators/executive officers of all 42 of California’s counties with populations less than 500,000 joined in one voice to urge Governor Newsom to release federal funding to address the unprecedented county demands of reducing and containing the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19).
County governments carry the obligation of implementing directives from the State Department of Public Health, providing safety net services, conducting disease tracking and tracing, and providing other direct health-related services. Yet, California’s counties with smaller populations have not received their allocation of federal CARES funding (cities under 500,000 are also impacted). Immediate allocation of these funds would provide urgent cash flow assistance to small counties struggling with the expenditures that specifically relate to the pandemic response. RCRC was helpful in ensuring all 42 counties signed on to the letter, available here; however, a note of appreciation is in order to the administrative offices in Santa Barbara County for crafting and managing the letter.
In conjunction with the effort made by county administrative officers, in a bipartisan letter to the Governor, members of the Legislature – led by Assembly Member Jim Wood (D-North Coast) - advocated for the distribution of these federal funds to counties and cities with populations under 500,000. Legislators urged that the expeditious distribution of the funds to smaller governments would provide them critical resources to continue meeting the demands of the moment. To date, the Newsom Administration has indicated a release of federal funds will occur after the May Revision is unveiled on May 14th.