Evanston received the first half of the city’s anticipated $43.2 million in COVID-19 relief funds this month as part of the American Rescue Plan Act.
The measure was designed to help stabilize local governments as they deal with revenue losses due to the ongoing pandemic. Now, city officials say they’re looking to community members and nonprofits to help decide where the money should be spent.
City Manager Erika Storlie called the opportunity to decide how to spend the money locally a “once-in-a-generational opportunity” that could change the landscape of how the city moves forward.
“It’s such a big opportunity, we want to make sure we spend adequate time one it,” Storlie said. “We want to make sure that what we invest in yields this community dividends for decades to come. That will require a lot of thoughtful discussion.”
In a presentation at the May 24 Evanston City Council meeting, Storlie said residents and elected officials have a big task ahead of them. City leaders must identify the community needs following the pandemic; identify programs, services or interventions to address those needs and “lift up the areas of community that were most disproportionately impacted.”
The money can be spent in areas of public health or to cover remaining COVID-19 pandemic costs or the costs of city employees still working on pandemic mitigation. It can also be used to deal with the economic impact of the pandemic, to boost the public sector workforce back to pre-pandemic levels and to fill positions held vacant, among other items, according to a presentation by Emma Carter, the city’s intergovernmental affairs coordinator.
The money cannot be spent to offset tax cuts, make a deposit on pension funds, pay for legal settlements, fund debt service or shore up rainy day funds or pension reserves, according to Carter’s presentation.
President Joe Biden signed the bill into law in March after it was narrowly passed along party lines in Congress. The act also provided direct cash payments to individuals making up to $75,000 along with allocating aid to schools and local governments.
Storlie has said the funds will help replenish the city after millions were cut from the budget last year due to fallout from the pandemic.
The 2021 budget passed in December reflects
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ongoing austerity at the city. It totaled $296 million, about $24.5 million less than the adopted 2020 budget. That budget included the elimination of 11 police officer positions and a 1% property tax levy increase.The total amount spent in 2020 was $282 million, about $38.3 million less than what was originally adopted, Storlie said. Those savings were partly achieved by furloughing staff, holding positions vacant, delaying equipment purchases, renegotiating service contracts and conservative staff spending, she said.
The city is expected to suffer a $20 million revenue loss from 2020 to 2022, Storlie said.
Half the relief money was delivered in May, and the other half will come in 2022, Storlie said. The funds must be spent by Dec. 31, 2024.