MONROE — Green County has a problem. But it’s a good kind of problem – how to spend millions in federal money allocated through COVID-19 relief measures passed just over a year ago by Congress.
The county is calling on local residents to “lean in” to help make the tough upcoming decisions on spending the federal funds, officials said, by applying to be part of the Green County American Rescue Plan Ad Hoc (ARPA) committee.
The millions in assistance is Green County’s part of a national plan – the COVID-19 Stimulus Package or American Rescue Plan, signed into law by President Joe Biden. It totals $1.9 trillion in economic stimulus, and was intended to speed recovery from both the economic and health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The aid was a supplement to the initial CARES Act from March 2020.
The state had $1.9 billion allocated, of which just under $7.2 million will come to Green County. The money needs to be allocated by the end of 2024. The county has received about half the money, and it expects the rest to arrive by spring.
“It’s a lot of money for the county,” said Victoria Solomon, Community Resource Development Educator with UW-Extension Green County “But it is coming in in phases and we have time to decide how to spend it.”
There exist strict criteria for how it will be spent but it generally must support the following: public health expenditures, help address the negative economic impacts caused by the public health emergency and COVID-19, replace lost revenue, provide premium pay for essential workers; and invest in water/sewer/broadband infrastructure — which is getting by far the most attention.
Deciding on how to spend the money locally isn’t political Solomon said, because it has already been approved and some of it sent out to counties, states and municipalities by Congress.
In a statement the county said the committee will “analyze proposals for the spending of the funds that Green County will receive and make recommendations to the Green County Board. The Ad Hoc Committee participants will be voting members and will consist of nine voting members (eight adult residents of Green County and Jerry Guth, chair of the Green County Finance and Auditing Committee).”
Once assembled, officials said they will likely meet once or twice a month, from February through June 2022 with some work to be completed outside of meetings. The Green County Finance and Auditing Committee make the final decision on who will be chosen to participate on the Ad Hoc Committee.
Those Interested in learning more about ARPA and the Green County Attend the virtual community educational program on Monday, Jan. 17 from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. To register for the session, contact Solomon at (608) 328-9440; or victoria.solomon@wisc.edu.
To apply to serve on the ARPA Ad-Hoc Committee, please complete an application by 8 a.m. on Jan. 24.
The application is on the Green County-ARPA webpage, which can be found online at https://wi-greencounty.civicplus.com/410/American-Rescue-Plan-Act-ARPA. After completing the form, send it to the Green County Clerk’s office via email at clerk@greencountywi.org or by mail at Green County Clerk, 1016 16th Avenue, Green County Courthouse, Monroe, WI 53566.
