Senator Blake Tillery (R-Vidalia) called Monday’s meeting of the Joint Appropriations Committee a “power-packed 45 minutes” after hearing an overview of the federal CARES Act by representatives of the National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL).
Tillery, the newly appointed Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and Chairman Terry England (R-Auburn), his counterpart in the House of Representatives, led the virtual meeting which was designed to give state lawmakers information on Coronavirus Relief Funding for areas such as education, healthcare, agriculture and unemployment.
“This has been very insightful as we try to figure out how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together,” said England.
State lawmakers are tasked with approving the FY21 budget when they return to session sometime next month. Governor Brian Kemp has told state agencies they should plan on cutting more than $3.5 billion from their budgets in the upcoming fiscal year — a 14 percent cut — as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown.
According to NCSL reps, the CARES Act packages are providing states with a total of over $500 billion in funding to help them deal with the impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak. Georgia’s portion of this funding amounts to $8.2 billion — with $4.1 billion coming through the Coronavirus Relief Fund.
According to the report, Georgia’s labor force has been one of the hardest hit. The state is currently ranked second in the country in the number of unemployment claims processed. Kentucky has the most, and Hawaii is currently ranked third. Jon Jukuri, of NCSL, said over 1.66 million claims have been filed in Georgia, which represents 34.8 percent of the state’s workforce.
The three hardest hit industries in Georgia are accommodations and food service, healthcare and social assistance, and trade, Jukuri said.
According to Austin Reid, of NCSL, education funding is being implemented through three streams: Governor’s Emergency Relief Fund, Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund and Elementary and Secondary Schools Emergency Relief Fund.
The Georgia Department of Education has already received $457 million as part of the Elementary and Secondary Schools Emergency Relief Fund. Reid said of that funding, $411 million was designated for Districts and Charter Schools in the form of Title I funds, and the state DOE set aside $46 million “to use as a rainy-day fund for districts.”
The CARES Act education funds are flexible and can be used for a wide variety of efforts including distance or remote learning, school meals, supporting at-risk student populations, mental and physical health, supplemental learning, facilities and equipment, and maintaining continuity of core staff and services.
Reid said Georgia should receive about $401 million for higher education, and they must spend 50 percent in emergency aid to students. Some institutions have already received their portion of the funds.
According to Reid, Kemp has not yet received an anticipated $105 million as part of the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund.
According to the reports, details of the funding to support farmers and ranchers are still being worked out and have not been released but relief funding will be available for the livestock industry, row crop producers and for specialty crops.
Funding is also being designated to states to cover COVID-19 testing costs, as well as grants for hospitals and public health centers.
