regulatory information on FederalRegister.gov with the objective of Regardless of how the assistance is structured, the financial assistance provided would have to be related to COVID-19. [3], 3. 56. New Documents May governments retain assets purchased with payments from the Fund? L. 116-94) for funds for programs authorized under section 330 through 340 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. Guidance on eligible uses of Fund disbursements by governments is available below. documents in the last year, 20 Additional information on payments to Tribal governments is available under Coronavirus Relief Fund Tribal Allocation Methodology and Tribal Allocation Methodology for Second Distribution, below.Treasury has completed making payments to Tribal governments, other than amounts that have not been paid to Alaska Native corporations pending litigation on that issue. In determining the business' eligibility for the grant, the recipient should not rely on self-certifications provided to the SBA. Expenses related to developing a long-term plan to reposition a recipient's convention and tourism industry and infrastructure would not be incurred due to the public health emergency and therefore may not be covered using payments from the Fund. A cost meets this requirement if either (a) the cost cannot lawfully be funded using a line item, allotment, or allocation within that budget or (b) the cost is for a substantially different use from any expected use of funds in such a line item, allotment, or allocation. As a matter of administrative convenience, the entire payroll cost of an employee whose time is substantially dedicated to mitigating or responding to the COVID-19 public health emergency is eligible, provided that such payroll costs are incurred by December 31, 2021. Must a State, local, or tribal government require applications to be submitted by businesses or individuals before providing assistance using payments from the Fund? For example, if determined to be a necessary expenditure, a government could provide grants to individuals facing economic hardship to allow them to pay their utility fees and thereby continue to receive essential services. 3. the official SGML-based PDF version on govinfo.gov, those relying on it for A unit of local government eligible for receipt of direct payment includes a county, municipality, town, township, village, parish, borough, or other unit of general government below the State level with a population that exceeds 500,000. The following is a list of examples of costs that would not be eligible expenditures of payments from the Fund. Yes. to the courts under 44 U.S.C. No. A Notice by the Treasury Department on 01/15/2021. If the grant is being provided to the small business to assist with particular expenditures, the business must not have already used the PPP or EIDL loan or grant for those expenditures. Investments in broadband for areas that are currently unserved or underserved. access for current print subscribers. Commerce manages the following grants to the 29 federally recognized Tribes in the state to bolster their response to the COVID-19 pandemic: $10 million state Disaster Relief Funds: COVID-19 Emergency Response Grant for Tribal Governments. Home Hopi Tribe CARES Act Committee Hopi Tribe COVID Emergency Assistance PP. The tribes executive and legislative branches are working together to form a plan to best utilize the funds to benefit tribal members through programs and services, according to Neely Tsoodle, tribe information officer. As a general matter, providing assistance to recipients to enable them to meet property tax requirements would not be an eligible use of funds, but exceptions may be made in the case of assistance designed to prevent foreclosures. Click "accept" below to confirm that you have read and understand this notice. 03/03/2023, 234 You have permission to edit this article. As previous guidance has stated, payments from the Fund may be used to meet the non-federal matching requirements for Stafford Act assistance to the extent such matching requirements entail COVID-19-related costs that otherwise satisfy the Fund's eligibility criteria and the Stafford Act. Are there prohibitions on combining a transaction supported with Fund payments with other CARES Act funding or COVID-19 relief Federal funding? The Carnegie-based tribe received the news from the U.S. Treasury Department regarding its Fiscal Recovery Funds from the act. documents in the last year, 853 2605 et seq. The payments constitute other financial assistance under 2 CFR 200.40. Accordingly, the Health Resources and Services Administration's (HRSA) COVID-19 Coverage Assistance Fund (CAF) will cover the costs of administering COVID-19 vaccines to patients whose health insurance doesn't cover vaccine administration fees, or does but typically . This means, for example, that a government could cover payroll expenses allocated on an hourly basis to employees' time dedicated to mitigating or responding to the COVID-19 public health emergency. May funds be used to satisfy non-federal matching requirements under the Stafford Act? [FR Doc. A centralized phone number and email have been activated where all questions about the Nation's precautionary measures, that are not health-related, can be directed. 1. This site displays a prototype of a Web 2.0 version of the daily How the fund developed during the pandemic. 42. 14. NORTHWEST Colville Confederated Tribes 1,750,446 103,183 NORTHWEST Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Confederated Tribes 718,933 13,209 NORTHWEST Coquille Indian Tribe RELIEF FUND. Information about this document as published in the Federal Register. Notifications from this discussion will be disabled. 5. The second payment will include the pro rata share of the employment allocation for each tribal government that confirms or amends its 2019 employment numbers. The Guidance provides that expenses associated with the provision of economic support in connection with the public health emergency, such as expenditures related to the provision of grants to small businesses to reimburse the costs of business interruption caused by required closures, would constitute eligible expenditures of Fund payments. CARNEGIE The Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma has received official confirmation it will receive almost $51 million from the American Rescue Plan Act. Expenses to facilitate distance learning, including technological improvements, in connection with school closings to enable compliance with COVID-19 precautions. Out of the $31 billion that tribes will receive, $20 billion will focus on combating COVID-19 and stabilizing safety nets in tribal communities. Tribes will need to be strategic about which funding source to use for each project. The Treasury Department made clear during the consultations that tribes that fail to confirm or amend their 2019 employment numbers by June 21 will not receive a payment from the employment allocation. documents in the last year, 940 Treasury has revised the guidance on CRF to provide that a cost associated with a necessary expenditure incurred due to the public health emergency shall be considered to have been incurred by December 31, 2022, if the recipient has incurred an obligation with respect to such cost by December 31, 2022. This page is for eligible state, local, territorial, and Tribal governments that are requesting Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds. To facilitate prompt distribution of Title V funds, the CARES Act authorized Treasury to make direct payments to local governments with populations in excess of 500,000, in amounts equal to 45% of the local government's per capita share of the statewide allocation. Expenses for the State share of Medicaid. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism documents in the last year, 11 Investing in housing and neighborhoods, such as affordable housing development, housing vouchers and housing navigation assistance to facilitate moves to neighborhoods with high economic opportunity. Given that it is not always possible to estimate with precision when a good or service will be needed, the touchstone in assessing the determination of need for a good or service during the covered period will be reasonableness at the time delivery or performance was sought, e.g., the time of entry into a procurement contract specifying a time Start Printed Page 4184for delivery. documents in the last year, 282 Fund payments made by Treasury to State, territorial, local, and Tribal governments do not entail grant agreements and thus the provisions of the Uniform Guidance (2 CFR part 200) applicable to grant agreements do not apply. acquiring computers and similar digital devices; acquiring and installing additional ventilation or other air filtering equipment; incurring additional transportation costs; or. documents in the last year, by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 48. We, at the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, have been addressing the COVID-19 pandemic since its inception in the US. Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. Yes, provided that if recipients separately invest amounts received from Start Printed Page 4194the Fund, they must use the interest earned or other proceeds of these investments only to cover expenditures incurred in accordance with section 601(d) of the Social Security Act and the Guidance on eligible expenses. The deadline to confirm or amend 2019 employment numbers is June 21, 2021. Keep it Clean. These may include expenditures incurred to allow the State, territorial, local, or Tribal government to respond directly to the emergency, such as by addressing medical or public health needs, as well as expenditures incurred to respond to second-order effects of the emergency, such as by providing economic support to those suffering from employment or business interruptions due to COVID-19-related business closures. This Holland & Knight alert addresses the latest FRF developments, important deadlines and some key takeaways for tribal governments to consider as they decide how to prioritize their spending of these funds. Please see Treasury's Guidance as updated on June 30 regarding when a cost is considered to be incurred for purposes of the requirement that expenses be incurred within the covered period. Please note that these instructions are for Fund recipients to return the balance of unused Fund payments to Treasury. The federal coronavirus relief package, known as the American Rescue Plan, which took effect in March, earmarked $20 billion for tribal governments an unprecedented federal investment in . The Public Inspection page for 1 day, $16.00 The COVID-19 Testing Site can be reached at (920) 819-8350 and the hours are 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM. As discussed in the Guidance above, the CARES Act provides that payments from the Fund must be used only to cover costs that were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020. The lost wages assistance payment to the ineligible individual would be deemed to be an ineligible. The Carnegie-based tribe received the news from the U.S. Treasury Department regarding its Fiscal Recovery Funds from the act. Any other COVID-19-related expenses reasonably necessary to the function of government that satisfy the Fund's eligibility criteria. Within two weeks of April 14, when the. According to the tribes information office, the amount received in the first of two allocations is identified as $50,966,838.27. 116-260 (Dec. 27, 2020), Budget, Financial Reporting, Planning and Performance, Financial Markets, Financial Institutions, and Fiscal Service, Treasury Coupon-Issue and Corporate Bond Yield Curve, Treasury International Capital (TIC) System, Kline-Miller Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014, Taxpayers Will See Improved Service This Filing Season Thanks to Inflation Reduction Act, Disparities in the Benefits of Tax Expenditures by Race and Ethnicity, Racial Differences in Economic Security: Non-Housing Assets, Treasury Sanctions People Involved in Serious Human Rights Abuse Against Vladimir Kara-Murza, Treasury Announces Approval of Up to $890.7 Million to Support Small Business Success Across Three States, Treasury Sanctions CJNG-Run Timeshare Fraud Network. Avery Street A3-G, Bureau of the Fiscal Service, P.O. The American Rescue Plan allocated $20 billion in Fiscal Recovery Funds (FRF) to tribes. Information contained in this alert is for the general education and knowledge of our readers. The hallmark of Holland & Knight's success has always been and continues to be legal work of the highest quality, performed by well prepared lawyers who revere their profession and are devoted to their clients. Regardless of the use of Fund payments for such purposes, FEMA funding is still dependent on FEMA's determination of eligibility under the Stafford Act. Payments from the Fund are not administered as part of a traditional grant program and the provisions of the Uniform Guidance, 2 CFR part 200, that are applicable to indirect costs do not apply. 34. Would providing a consumer grant program to prevent eviction and assist in preventing homelessness be considered an eligible expense? These include: Although tribes have broad discretion within the above categories of infrastructure, the Treasury Department clarified in the Interim Final Rule that general infrastructure spending (roads, energy, etc.) Blog; Press Room; Subscribe for Updates; About Us. May Fund payments be used for expenditures related to the administration of Fund payments by a State, territorial, local, or Tribal government? How does a government determine whether payroll expenses for a given employee satisfy the substantially dedicated condition? It is not designed to be, and should not be used as, the sole source of information when analyzing and resolving a legal problem, and it should not be substituted for legal advice, which relies on a specific factual analysis. For example, a transfer from a county to a constituent city would not be permissible if the funds were intended to be used simply to fill shortfalls in government revenue to cover expenditures that would not otherwise qualify as an eligible expenditure. Be Nice. For example, a State received the minimum $1.25 billion allocation and had one county with a population over 500,000 that received $250 million directly. . Payroll includes certain hazard pay and overtime, but not workforce bonuses. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, 19. 5423 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<5F689BCC1EF8244F90DAC385661FF4B0><9322B044ED388A4896D8D2CCA536C7F2>]/Index[5401 34]/Info 5400 0 R/Length 109/Prev 351616/Root 5402 0 R/Size 5435/Type/XRef/W[1 3 1]>>stream A few highlights of what's included in the package: Creates a $150 billion Coronavirus Relief Fund for state, local and tribal governments. Yes, this would be an eligible expense if the government determined that the costs of such employment and training programs would be necessary due to the public health emergency. The new COVID-19 relief bill include $31.2 billion for native communities and tribal governments. At what point would costs be considered to be incurred in the case of a grant made by a State, local, or tribal government to cover interest and principal amounts of a loan, such as might be provided as part of a small business assistance program in which the loan is made by a private institution? Increased workers compensation cost to the government due to the COVID-19 public health emergency incurred during the period beginning March 1, 2020, and ending December 31, 2021, is an eligible expense. Public universities have incurred expenses associated with providing refunds to students for education-related expenses, including tuition, room and board, meal plans, and other fees (such as activities fees). To register someone . 58. 03/03/2023, 1465 0. The statute also specifies that expenditures using Fund payments must be necessary. The Department of the Treasury understands this term broadly to mean that the expenditure is reasonably necessary for its intended use in the reasonable judgment of the government officials responsible for spending Fund payments. Thus, a grant or loan, for example, provided by a recipient using payments from the Fund must be used by the subrecipient only to purchase (or reimburse a purchase of) goods or services for which receipt both is needed within the covered period and occurs within the covered period. May Fund payments be provided to non-profits for distribution to individuals in need of financial assistance, such as rent relief? 11. Register (ACFR) issues a regulation granting it official legal status. Reimbursement to donors for donated items or services. Until the ACFR grants it official status, the XML In recognition of the particular importance of public health and public safety workers to State, local, and tribal government responses to the public health emergency, Treasury has provided, as an administrative accommodation, that a State, local, or tribal government may presume that public health and public safety employees meet the substantially dedicated test, unless the chief executive (or equivalent) of the relevant government determines that specific circumstances indicate otherwise. Expenditures related to the provision of grants to small businesses to reimburse the costs of business interruption caused by required closures. In March, Congress approved a temporary 6.2 percentage point increase in the federal government's share of cost for state Medicaid . Paycheck Protection Program This forgivable loan helps keep your workforce employed. Moreover, the laws of each jurisdiction are different and are constantly changing. 254 through 256). Sunny. The disaster declaration for the Colville Tribes and the resulting agreement are the first in FEMA Region 10, as tribes previously were required to seek federal disaster aid through a state declaration. Of particular relevance for the Fund, payments may not be expended for an abortion, for health benefits coveragemeaning a package of services covered by a managed health care provider or organization pursuant to a contract or other arrangementthat includes coverage of abortion, for the creation of a human embryo or embryos for research purposes, or for research in which a human embryo is destroyed, discarded, or knowingly subjected to risk of injury or death greater than that allowed for research on fetuses in utero under 45 CFR 46.204(b) and 42 U.S.C.