Financial relief appears to be on its way to Eureka.
Finance Director Barbara Flint said the city is expecting to collect $700,708 from St. Louis County’s share of the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
She said St. Louis County officials have allotted the city that amount based on population.
Flint said Eureka will receive $68 per resident.
Flint said the CARES Act money will help the city recover unexpected purchases that have been made since March. She has been keeping track of those expenses since the start of the pandemic.
“It’s a win for us,” she said.
Flint said the city will likely submit a reimbursement request for more than the allotted amount after county officials announced on Monday that municipalities may be reimbursed for law enforcement salaries and benefits from March to the end of the year.
“Talk about a win,” she said. “It was really great news.”
On Tuesday, she said the reimbursement of law enforcement salaries and benefits was not official yet, but she believes the city will be reimbursed for those expenses.
Flint said the city had already calculated about $55,000 in expenses related to COVID-19. However, she also said she was still working to tabulate all expenses that might be eligible for reimbursement.
Flint said covered expenses include the costs of masks, sanitizing equipment and sanitation chemicals. An example of sanitizing equipment would be bipolar ionization generation units that were installed at all city buildings, Flint said. She said the equipment helps clean the air.
When the city adds police salaries and benefits to those expenses, Flint said she expects the reimbursement request will be at least $200,000 more than the CARES Act funds allotted to the city.
Flint said Eureka also will seek reimbursement for COVID-related cleaning expenses through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Flint said FEMA will only cover 75 percent of any costs, while the CARES Act provides a 100 percent reimbursement.
Flint said the city will transfer money budgeted to pay Eureka Police officers’ salaries and benefits that is covered by CARES Act funds to its general fund.
“It will definitely be a plus to our budget,” she said. “It’s good to have a healthy general fund balance.”
Mayor Sean Flower said he is happy to finally have news about how much money the city is in line for after being critical about how county officials have handled the CARES Act allocations.
“I think that process has been pretty widely criticized around the county,” Flower said. “You are talking about a May fund, and it’s going to be October, November before we can spend it.”
Flower has said it has taken county officials too long to make the money available.
“At least it’s getting out my biggest concern, which is there was going to be a big slug of money sitting at the county,” he said.
Flower said the money must be spent by the end of the year or it must be returned to the federal government. He said he has been looking into the ability to give grants to local businesses with the city’s portion, but on Tuesday, he said he believed that would not be allowed.
Flower said he has worked with Flint and city attorney Kathy Butler to figure out how CARES Act money can be used under the county’s guidelines. He also said the guidelines have been changing.
During a special meeting on Sept. 22, the Board of Aldermen voted 6-0 on an ordinance that would accept the CARES Act funds, city clerk and director of economic development Julie Wood said. She said the ordinance was required to allow the city to receive the money.