photo by: Chris Conde

Douglas County Courthouse, 2018.

Douglas County leaders say the upcoming process for distributing nearly $24 million in federal pandemic relief should distribute some emergency funding right away, but that the majority of the money should go through a more strategic process.

As part of its meeting Wednesday, the Douglas County Commission discussed the process and priorities for distributing the $23.7 million that the county will receive over the next two years from the American Rescue Plan Act. The county’s first installment of $11.9 million is available, and County Administrator Sarah Plinsky suggested that the commission consider allocating a certain percentage for immediate emergency funding and then having a longer-term process for the rest.

“I think one of the questions really before the commissioners as we think about how to disburse these funds is how do we balance those two things?” Plinsky said.

Plinsky said she thought that consideration would likely lead the county to a multifaceted process that included an initial process to provide emergency funding and a separate process for medium- and long-range efforts. Plinsky noted that the county was beginning studies to assess needs related to homelessness and housing, and those studies and other data could help inform spending.

Plinsky suggested that instead of having agencies start by submitting grant proposals, as the county did with previous federal pandemic relief, the county could potentially have agencies file a brief notice of intent. She said the commission could review those filings to get an idea of what the community thinks would be an appropriate way to use the funds and develop a strategy.

“I think that could be something that we use this fall for that sort of longer-term (money), that allows you to get some data on what it is the community is thinking and allows you to be deliberate and selective as to how you want to set your focus,” Plinsky said.

Commissioners said they agreed that some of the funding should be made available immediately for emergency purposes, and that they were interested in the notice of intent process and a more strategic, data-driven review to determine how additional funding should be allocated.

“I do think it makes sense to kind of have a multi-phased approach to this and that that’s the smart way for us to take the time that we have to invest the dollars wisely,” Commission Vice Chair Shannon Reid said. “But I do think a 10%, at least, reserve or allocation right up front for some emergency needs is necessary.”

Commissioners also briefly discussed some of their initial thoughts on spending priorities. Finance Manager Brooke Sauer said the county has a broad range of ways it can spend the money. Sauer said eligible uses include response or mitigation efforts due to the public health or economic impacts of the coronavirus; providing premium pay to essential workers; making investments to improve infrastructure for drinking water, waste water and broadband; and paying to provide government services as long as those funds are to offset lost revenue.

Priorities mentioned by commissioners at Wednesday’s meeting included addressing the ongoing public health needs related to the pandemic, support for vulnerable populations and those most affected by the pandemic, and investments in rural broadband infrastructure. Allocating money in a sustainable way was also a key theme, as commissioners said they did not want to create issues two years from now when ARPA funding runs out.

Plinsky said county staff will develop recommendations for procedures to distribute the funds and timelines for that process to further discuss at an upcoming meeting. She said staff would need at least a couple of weeks to prepare those documents.

In other business, the commission voted 3-0 to adopt a new home rule resolution to replace the existing resolution regarding the use and sale of fireworks. The new resolution bans people from shooting off fireworks on county-owned property, with the exception of limited areas at Lone Star Lake and Wells Overlook Park. Other provisions increase the permit fees for fireworks stands to help offset county costs associated with the permitting process, as well as additional updates and requirements. Some fireworks vendors wanted to expand the sale dates for fireworks to help make up for the increase in fees, but commissioners said that change would require additional consideration.