NACo urges Congress to include county priorities in COVID-19 legislative response

Key Takeaways

On March 17, NACo sent a letter to U.S. House and U.S. Senate leadership urging the inclusion of key county priorities in legislative proposals to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

Congress is expected to consider a third legislative response package to stem the pandemic’s impact on the nation’s health care system and economy, following approval of an initial $8.3 billion emergency aid package earlier this March (H.R. 6074) and a second comprehensive response package (H.R. 6201). These proposals – the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (H.R. 6201) and the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act (H.R. 6074) – contain significant federal investments and program flexibility to enhance counties’ ability to protect residents from the spread of COVID-19 and mitigate the pandemic’s impact on our communities.

NACo’s letter, which can be viewed at this link, urged the inclusion of a comprehensive set of provisions that would enhance counties’ response to this emergency. Recommendations outlined in the letter include:

• Deployment of testing equipment;
• Access to and distribution of personal protective equipment for essential county service providers;
• Clarification on FEMA resources and additional funding;
• Maintenance of robust behavioral and mental health services;
• Strengthen the local health care safety-net;
• Medicaid Fiscal Accountability Regulation (MFAR) moratorium;
• Emergency funding for publicly-funded child care, Head Start and Early Head Start;
• Provide greater certainty for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program;
• Restore advance refunding bonds;
• Increase access to capital for small borrowers;
• Clarify tax credits for paid sick and paid family and medical leave for county employers;
• Mandatory funding for Payments In-Lieu of Taxes (PILT);
• Expand use of Secure Rural Schools (SRS);
• Preserve local emergency communications networks;
• Increase broadband access;
• Funding and flexibility for elections;
• Funding for critical housing programs;
• Return solvency to the Highway Trust Fund (HTF);
• Authorize and appropriate funding for the Public Transportation Emergency Relief (PTER) Program (49 U.S.C. 5324);
• Uncap the Passenger Facility Charge (PFC) and index it to inflation;
• Allow flexibility in hiring;
• Fully fund programs that support local airports; and
• Increase the local share of the Surface Transportation Block Grant Program (STBGP).

For more NACo resources on the coronavirus, please see the following links:

• Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): County Response Efforts & Priorities (NACo landing page)
• Federal COVID-19 Response Highlights for Counties (NACo legislative analysis)
• Letter to Congressional Leadership on Continued Coronavirus Response (NACo letter, March 17, 2020)
• Letter to Congressional Leadership on Coronavirus Pandemic (NACo letter, March 13, 2020)