On Tuesday, May 12, House leadership released the HEROES Act, which is intended to be the first draft of the fourth COVID-19 federal stimulus package. The House is scheduled to vote on the bill on Friday, May 15. The $3 Trillion proposed bill would provide fiscal support to state and local governments facing budgetary hardship, direct support to families, fiscal assistance for first responders, and more.
Click here for full text of the bill.
Click here for a title by title summary.
The proposed bill includes $1.3 billion in Federal Assistance to FEMA to remain available until September 30, 2021 – “to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus.” Of which, $500 million would be made available for the AFG program specifically “for the purchase of personal protective equipment and related supplies, mental health evaluations, training, and temporary infectious disease de-contamination or sanitizing facilities and equipment.” The proposed bill also includes $500 million for SAFER.
The bill would prohibit the use of AFG or SAFER funds for any purpose other than what is specifically described in the bill. The bill would also waive cost sharing and additional requirements for fire departments to help expedite the distribution of grant awards.
The bill would provide $375 billion in fiscal assistance to local governments – over multiple years – to respond to, mitigate, cover costs for, and meet revenue shortfalls stemming from COVID-19 and its economic impacts. States would receive $500 billion in fiscal assistance. The state and local fiscal assistance is intended to help to mitigate mounting budget shortfalls hitting jurisdictions, as the economic fallout from the coronavirus continues.
This is a dynamic and quickly-moving process. The FAMA/FEMSA GAC will continue to keep you informed and updated as we learn more.
If you have any questions, please contact the GAC Co-chairs:
John Granby at [email protected]
Lee Morris at [email protected]
David Durstine at [email protected]
or GAC Sr. Adviser Dave Gatton at [email protected]