The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Biden plan will reimburse states for more COVID costs
WASHINGTON — President-elect Joe Biden has agreed to increase the federal government's reimbursement of states and local governments for COVID-19-related costs, a change that will result in more money for Connecticut.
Biden will announce the change in a speech outlining a coronavirus emergency relief package at 7:15 p.m. Thursday night, a source with knowledge of the announcement said.
The package Biden is working on with Democrats will include direct aid to state and local governments, along with another round of stimulus checks, enhanced unemployment insurance and more money for vaccine distribution and schools.
“We were looking at — it may have been in the area of $800 billion,” said U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-3, who chairs the House Appropriations Committee, said of the direct government aid in an interview Wednesday. “It’s hard to know. We certainly need to be looking at $300 to $500 billion for state and local governments.”
Democrats will need some Republican votes to get the bill over the finish line in the Senate and congressional Republicans have in the past objected to direct state and local aid.
But Biden will be able to change federal reimbursement rates for government’s coronavirus expenses without legislation right away.
Specifically, Biden is expected to direct the Federal Emergency Management Agency to increase its reimbursement rate for states', territories' and local government's emergency coronavirus costs from 75 percent to 100 percent, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., said Thursday. He is also expected to ask Congress for an additional $30 billion for FEMA to cover the reimbursement, as part of coronavirus legislation that Democrats are now crafting.
Schumer, who will soon become the Senate majority leader, has repeatedly advocated for more federal reimbursement of states' coronavirus costs since the pandemic began, including pressing President Donald Trump for the change. He discussed the matter with Biden who agreed to increase the reimbursement rate, he said.
States, territories and local governments have paid to construct temporary hospitals, buy personal protective equipment, cover overtime for public health workers, and other costs, many of which can be reimbursed by FEMA during declared emergencies. States and local governments can apply for reimbursement for various costs slowly over time.
December's coronavirus relief legislation signed into law by Trump included more funding for FEMA to reimburse such state costs, but did not give state and local governments direct aid to help them counter lost revenues. Democrats are continuing to press for direct state and local aid in their next legislative effort.
Schumer said this week more coronavirus relief will be the first legislation the Senate will pass under his leadership, after Biden is inaugurated Wednesday.
“I would hope that we could get bipartisan support for a Covid-relief package as soon as possible because I think people are suffering,” DeLauro said. “I think what we did in December was a life-line for the American people but I think we have an opportunity to vastly increase the resources that we provide. First we need to deal with getting the vaccine under control and that means vaccine distribution and testing.”
She also listed funding for child care, schools, paid sick days, paid family and medical leave and expanding the child tax credit as her other top priorities for inclusion in the bill.