How Much Will Sacramento-Area Counties Get From $1.9 Trillion Virus Relief Bill?
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — As the newest COVID-19 relief bill heads to President Joe Biden's desk for final approval, counties and cities in the Sacramento region are planning how to spend the millions of dollars coming their way.
Cities and counties in our area say this money will be transformative in how quickly areas are able to start recovering from the pandemic.
According to Gov. Gavin Newsom's administration, the bill could pump more than $150 billion into California's economy including a $26 billion windfall for the state's already burgeoning budget surplus.
Locally, Sacramento County will receive around $301 million, Stanislaus County will get $106 million, and San Joaquin County will get $147 million under the plan. The funding is determined in part by population.
Below is the estimated funding (in millions) for counties in the Greater Sacramento Region:
| Amador | 7.71 |
| Calaveras | 8.9 |
| Colusa | 4.18 |
| El Dorado | 37.4 |
| Nevada | 19.35 |
| Placer | 77.25 |
| Plumas | 3.65 |
| Sacramento | 301.01 |
| San Joaquin | 147.81 |
| Sierra | 0.58 |
| Solano | 86.82 |
| Stanislaus | 106.8 |
| Suter | 18.81 |
| Tuolumne | 10.57 |
| Yolo | 10.57 |
| Yuba | 15.26 |
Click here to see how much funding each city and county got nationwide.
"The act of Congress today and President Biden will literally touch the lives of literally hundreds of thousands of Sacramentans," said Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg.
Sacramento is anticipating getting $121 million from the funding package. Mayor Steinberg's goal is to follow a similar method to when the city distributed $89 million in CARES Act funding by prioritizing small business, housing assistance, workforce development and tourism.
"We helped thousands of people. We helped so many small businesses and non-profits stay afloat. I want to suggest to my colleagues that we use a similar approach," he explained. "We need to focus on the sectors of the economy and the people who have gotten hurt the most as a result of COVID when we and provide not just a lifeline but where we can bolster."
With a $1.9 billion county budget, San Joaquin County plans to invest most if not all of the new federal funds back into the community.
"Our board noted we don't need it for our county budget, we really want to use it for our residents that are struggling," said San Joaquin Deputy County Administrator, Jolena Voorhis.
The money will be used for things like investing in programs the county established during the pandemic to help businesses and residents with recovery efforts.
"People call me in tears, they are just desperate for money to get by," she explained. "We want to make sure we invest that wisely because we know that this money isn't going to be forever, it's a one-time funding source," said Voorhis.
Voorhis says the county is waiting to find out the final funding amounts and requirements for spending before any decisions are made. The county's Board of Supervisors is requesting proposals from the County Administrator at the next Board meeting.
Final approval from President Biden is expected sometime later this week.
