Inside, we’ll break down Mahoning commissioners’ $8.2 million allocation, approved Thursday.
CEDARVILLE — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine on Thursday signed Ohio House Bill 614 which, among various other things, distributes $650 million in Coronavirus Relief Funds across the state.
Of that, $38.1 million is headed to counties, municipalities and townships in the Mahoning Valley.
Mahoning County is set to receive $16,481,524, according to the Legislative Service Commission.
On Thursday, county commissioners approved allocations totaling $8.2 million to various county funds:
- $7,500 for the Butler Institute of American Art, which is organizing video programs for children;
- $1.5 million for Catholic Charities Regional Agency, which is partnering with Mahoning-Youngstown Community Action Program to offer rent, mortgage and utility subsidies for those financially affected by the pandemic;
- $200,000 for the commissioners’ Community fund, which will pay for hand-washing stations developed by a New Middletown company and planned to go in area homeless shelters and schools;
- $1.5 million to go into Valley Economic Development Partners‘ (formerly MVEDC) new small business subsidy program which, so far, has approved 93 area small businesses for $1.25 million in coronavirus relief;
- $300,000 for all the Mahoning County Board of Health’s coronavirus programs;
- $200,000 for the Mahoning County FOP to develop new children’s holiday programs, as its community outreach events were suspended this year due to the pandemic;
- $200,000 for any pandemic-related supplies or equipment, like PPE and scanners, needed by the Mahoning County Board of Developmental Disabilities;
- $50,000 for Mercy Health, which purchases local fresh produce to distribute to patients, as well as a program that doubles SNAP benefits when used to buy it;
- $4,242,500 for Mahoning County departments, offices, boards and community programs.
“Hopefully, they’re going to expand the flexibility on what salaries could be [paid out of these funds] to make up potential shortcomings in our budget in 2021,” said Audrey Tillis, commissioners’ executive director. “There are different ways in the guidelines where we can recover some of our compensation costs as it relates to COVID.”
She said a big target of that offset could come from the sheriff’s office, which has been receiving all new Mahoning County jail inmates in one separate “isolation” pod, where they’re held for 10 days before being released into the general population if they’re found to be free of coronavirus.
“CARES Act funds have made possible a wide array of local coronavirus relief efforts. Expanded testing, grants for small businesses, aid to local nonprofits, support for public health and safety efforts, PPE acquisition and more are all examples of how these funds have benefited and strengthened local communities,” reads a Thursday statement from the County Commissioners Association of Ohio, the Ohio Municipal League, the Ohio Township Association and the Ohio Mayors Alliance.
“Local governments alone could not have shouldered the expense of these crucial response efforts. Weakened and fluctuating local revenue streams could not sustain these costs in addition to strong ongoing demand for local services.”
Trumbull County and its municipalities and townships are set to receive a total of $14,268,281, and a total of $7,342,859 is headed to Columbiana County and its municipalities and townships, according to the commission.
HB 614 also addresses Ohio’s unemployment compensation program, Facilities Establishment Fund, community projects at the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, workforce education partnership, land conveyance and concealed handgun licenses, according to the governor’s office.
