Information

Type: Deliberation

Department: BUD - Budget

Directors' Update: TBD

Business Meeting: Nov. 23, 2020

Summary:

Amending  the Subrecipient Agreement between Lewis County and the Lewis County Public Utility District No. 1 to provide emergency utility assistance for residents of Lewis County that have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 Pandemic

Publications: NA

Cover Letter To: Chris Roden Lewis County PUD 321 NW Pacific Ave Chehalis WA 98532

Additional Copies To: Kaity Nissell, Grace Jimenez, Suzette Smith, Tamara Hayes, and Becky Butler

Resolution

WHEREAS, Washington State has allocated to the County federal stimulus funding (“CARES Funds”) under Section 601(a) of the Social Security Act, as amended by Section 5001 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act and Section V and VI of the CARES Act (“CARES Act”) for the limited purposes identified in the Interagency Agreement between the Washington State Department of Commerce and Lewis County (“IGA”), identified as Attachment A, and the Coronavirus Relief Funds for Local Governments Program Guidelines (“Program Guidelines”), identified as Attachment B.  Attachments A and B are attached hereto and incorporated herein by this reference; and

WHEREAS, the CARES Act authorizes the County to seek reimbursement from the State for certain costs incurred in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency during the period of March 1, 2020, through November 30, 2020, which may include reimbursement of expenditures incurred to respond directly to the emergency as well as expenditures incurred to respond to second-order effects of the emergency, such as providing economic support to those suffering from employment or business interruptions due to COVID-19 related business closures; and

WHEREAS, all requests submitted by the County to the State for reimbursement must be for expenses that are 1) connected to the COVID-19 emergency; 2) necessary expenses, 3) not filling a shortfall in government revenues; 4) not funded through another budget line item, allotment or allocation, as of March 27, 2020; and 5) would not exist without COVID-19 or would be for a substantially different purpose as provided in the IGA and Program Guidelines (collectively “Reimbursements”); and

WHEREAS, the County desires to allocate additional CARES Funds to Lewis County residents experiencing severe financial hardship due to job loss, layoff, reduction of work hours or other circumstances resulting from the COVID-19 emergency that need utility payment assistance to avoid utility disconnect and thereby endanger the health and well-being of such impacted residents, with such allocation of funds to be consistent with the Reimbursement requirements; and

WHEREAS, Resolution 20-329 authorized funding to the LCPUD not to exceed $100,000 to assist residential utility customers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; and

WHEREAS, the BOCC recognizes there are additional residents and commercial entities that would benefit from utility assistance, and Public Utility District No. 1 (LCPUD) desires to amend this Agreement so that the County may seek CARES Funds for appropriate and qualifying reimbursements for provision of residential and commercial utility assistance grants to be made by the LCPUD to eligible commercial entities residents who are utility customers of the utility.

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED the County agrees to reimburse the LCPUD an additional sum up to $64,000 for a total of $164,000 for utility assistance on or before November 30, 2020, provided that the COVID-19 Reimbursement request support is received as stated in Section 4 of the agreement.

DONE IN OPEN SESSION this 23rd day of November, 2020.