Thompson and region’s leaders discuss American Rescue Plan and benefits for local governments
- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – With local governments being the “tip of the spear” in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic’s health and economic challenges, Congressman Mike Thompson and a group of local leaders from around his North Coast district met online on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the American Rescue Plan and the state and local funding it includes.
Video of the discussion can be seen here.
The $1.9 trillion plan, proposed by President Joe Biden, includes $350 billion for the creation of a new State and Local Coronavirus Relief Fund to provide critical support to state, local, tribal and territorial governments that was not included in the previous stimulus and relief packages.
California’s estimated allocation would be $26.2 billion. Thompson said more than half a billion dollars is expected to come to the Fifth Congressional District.
Locally, the county of Lake and its cities could receive $13.9 million, while Contra Costa County and its cities would receive $241.4 million, $47.4 million for Napa County, $117.2 million for Solano County and $142.6 million for Sonoma County.
Thompson’s office said that by replacing lost and decreased state and local revenue, these funds will help state and local governments keep first responders, frontline health workers and other essential service providers on the job safe; continue to roll out vaccines; and start to rebuild and support small businesses hurt by this pandemic.
During Tuesday’s discussion, Thompson was joined by Lake County Board of Supervisors Chair Bruno Sabatier, Pinole Mayor Norma Martinez-Rubin, Napa County Sheriff John Robertson, Vallejo Fire Chief Daryl Arbuthnott, Napa County Superintendent of Public Schools Barbara Nemko, Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce CEO Mark Bodenhamer and Ole Health CEO Alicia Hardy.
Thompson said he brought the local leaders together to explain why this funding is so vital to keep first responders on the job, support teachers and make sure businesses can stay open.
Nearly 490,000 Americans have died from the virus, with millions more who have been sick, Thompson said.
“Businesses are closed, some of them sadly, forever,” with nearly one milion people filing for unemployment every week and children out of school, he said.
“We need a strong federal response, and we need to respond quickly,” said Thompson, explaining that the relief the package offers “addresses both the health and the economic sides of this pandemic.”
The plan includes $23 billion for vaccine manufacturing and distribution, another $1,400 in stimulus checks for individuals, $30 billion in rental assistance, expansion of emergency unemployment insurance through September and $15 billion in grants for the hardest hit small businesses, Thompson said.
All of that is in addition to the $350 billion in direct assistance for state and local governments.
“State and local governments are doing so much,” said Thompson. “Our cities and counties are essential public services.”
Local leaders share challenges
“All aspects of our communities have been impacted by COVID-19 and we must continue to act,” said Sabatier.
One of the key differences between the American Rescue Plan and the CARES Act, the relief bill passed last year, is that it offers communities of under 500,000 residents direct access to the funds rather than having them allocated through the state, Sabatier said.
He said funds can help with a variety of things such as public health, testing and contact tracing. “Even as a surge wanes it is more important than ever to isolate these new cases.”
Sabatier said the vaccine rollout is critical, and requires acting efficiently and equitably. Two facilities are now serving Lake County’s homeless, a very vulnerable demographic, and he said those services should be continued throughout the pandemic and beyond.
There also has been an increased need in Behavioral Health services, with Lake County experiencing a 500-percent increase in substance abuse calls compared to last year, Sabatier said.
Other critical services Sabatier said require funding are the senior centers’ Meals on Wheels programs and the increased safety protocols put in place at the Lake County Jail, where an outbreak occurred.
Vallejo Fire Chief Daryl Arbuthnott said fire personnel, like medical workers, have continued working through the pandemic with no break.
The city of Vallejo has had to dip into its reserves and retirement to make ends meet, with Arbuthnott noting the pandemic has created unexpected expenses and challenges for small government. On top of that, there were last year’s wildland fires and the summertime protests.
Arbuthnott said the package “will do wonders” for small governments and fire departments.
“Nobody has been hit harder than kids,” said Napa County Superintendent of Schools Barbara Nemko, who explained that schools there have been in a hybrid model since October, with children only in school in person about two and a half days a week.
The children also need a lot of social and emotional support in addition to a great deal of academic interventions, Nemko said.
For every month a child is out of school, it translates to financial loss in their later careers, she said.
Nemko also noted a vaccine shortage is impacting their schools. She said 950 school staffers were vaccinated a month ago but they don’t yet have enough vaccine for the second doses.
“Our businesses have been hit incredibly hard by this pandemic,” said Mark Bodenhamer, the Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce CEO.
He said he’s hopeful for the vaccine, but cautioned that the pandemic’s economic damage will take years to overcome.
The pandemic has shown how interconnected businesses and the government are. “Our economy truly is like an ecosystem,” Bodenhamer said.
While the chamber doesn’t usually advocate for government funding, Bodenhamer said this is an extraordinary circumstance and every effort needs to be made to keep the economy and community intact.
“The CARES Act really did save the American economy,” Thompson said of last year’s help from the government.
Alicia Hardy, CEO of OLE Health of Napa and Sonoma counties, also pointed to the need for additional funding for testing and vaccinations, and the American Rescue Plan’s one-time direct funding for community centers to cover things like vaccine administration and recovering lost revenue.
She said they also have seen a 200-percent increase in demand for mental health services and are struggling to meet that demand.
Economic recovery concerns and the Lake County process
Lake County News asked Thompson about the assumptions behind the legislation, and whether or not the plan’s monetary infusion will carry the country through the year – if a majority of Americans take the vaccine and more sectors start to reopen by fall – or if there is an anticipation that more aid may be needed as a bridge into next year should some sectors still be lagging.
Thompson said most major economists have said the biggest danger isn’t spending too much, it’s spending not enough.
He said Biden has increased the available vaccine by 57 percent and earlier in the day it was announced that 13.6 million doses a week will be made available to the states, up from 11 million. Thompson said he’s hopeful that everyone can be vaccinated by the end of summer.
“All the economists told us this from day No. 1, it’s not like throwing the light switch, it’s not like the economy’s off or the economy’s on, even when we get back to operating in a safe environment, there’s going to be some struggles,” Thompson said, pointing out that some businesses will never open again.
Recovery is going to be slow going, and while Thompson said he would love it if this is the last go-around needed in terms of funding, “If the American people need help after September, we need to be there to give them help.”
Lake County News also asked Sabatier about what the process for determining the use of the funds would look like if the plan passes and the county of Lake receives the anticipated amount of money.
Sabatier said it would be similar to how the Board of Supervisors dealt with the CARES Act funding last year. They had a committee review the programs and services being stretched thin because of COVID-19 and then came back to the board for a public discussion on how to allocate it.
He said they also would need to look at the situation, which is going to last “a little longer than any of us anticipated” and make sure critical government services don’t decrease, while also considering all of the needs important to the community.
“I will continue to work to pass this bill as soon as possible and look forward to the president signing it into law, so we can get this relief to our communities as fast as possible,” Thompson said in a followup statement on Tuesday.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.