More than 1,800 Michigan local governments are calling for the state to share a portion of CARES Act funding with local communities due to COVID-19.
The Michigan Municipal League (MML), the Michigan Association of Counties (MAC) and the Michigan Townships Associations (MTA) sent a joint letter to Governor Whitmer and state leaders Friday thanking them for their leadership during this crisis and seeking their continued support.
Specifically, local governments are urging the state to use some of the nearly $4 billion Michigan is receiving from the CARES Act to support local governments of all sizes affected by this pandemic.
“It’s vital that the state share this CARES Act revenue because the response on the ground is being coordinated by local governments who are devoting every available resource to this pandemic while our revenue is vanishing,” said Dan Gilmartin, CEO and executive director of the Michigan Municipal League. “Finding more efficiencies and further cuts to essential services will not solve the impact of the coronavirus on local governments. We need the state’s partnership and support in this time of crisis.”
The letter sent by the three organizations to the Governor on Friday urges state leaders to set aside an equitable amount of money for local units of government to draw down upon to reimburse their eligible, COVID-related expenses.
The three organizations asked that an equitable per capita amount, equal to approximately $1.1 billion, be made available to all other local units of government in Michigan to cover these expenses.
Once federal guidance is issued for the Coronavirus Relief Fund and Michigan receives its expected $3.87 billion total allocation, the League, MAC and MTA will work together in defining what local expenses will qualify for reimbursement and the timeframe for drawing down those funds.
