Section 601(a) of the Social Security Act, as added by section 5001 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), established the Coronavirus Relief Fund (Fund) and appropriated $150 billion to the Fund. Under the CARES Act, the Fund is to be used to make payments for specified uses to States and certain local governments; the District of Columbia and U.S. Territories; and Tribal governments. Hennepin County received a direct payment out of the Fund from the U.S. Treasury.

The CARES Act provides that money from the Fund may only be used to cover costs that:

1. are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19);
2. were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020 (the date of enactment of the CARES Act) for the State or government; and
3. were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020 and ends on December 30, 2020.

Allowable expenditures include expenses for acquisition and distribution of medical and protective supplies, including sanitizing products and personal protective equipment; expenses for disinfection of public areas and other facilities; expenses of actions to facilitate compliance with COVID-19-related public health measures, such as expenses to improve telework capabilities for public employees; payroll expenses for public safety, public health, health care, human services, and similar employees whose services are substantially dedicated to mitigating or responding to the COVID19 public health emergency, including costs of personnel that have been diverted to substantially different functions due to the COVID-19 public health emergency; and any other COVID-19 related expenses reasonably necessary to the function of government that satisfy the CARES Act criteria.

Current Request: This request seeks $3,000,000 in the Federal CARES funding be allocated to supplement the Resident and Real Estate Services’ budget for the Service Centers Division. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Service Centers Division which is the largest deputy registrar in the State of Minnesota was shut down for approximately nine weeks and has now begun reopening under a phased safety plan that is less efficient than the previous business model. As such, there is a significant service backlog and a high demand for licensing services. CARES monies are needed to expand the service center’s footprint because of the safety requirements associated with the COVID-19 Pandemic. Resources are needed for space modifications consistent with safety plans, technology set up, and to configure the spaces for customer service at Brookdale, North Minneapolis Hub and Ridgedale. An additional satellite location is being investigated. CARES monies will also be utilized to hire additional limited duration staff members to serve customers, and to provide them with appropriate PPE and cleaning supplies. Finally, additional technology will be secured to support the Service Center’s operation including an on-line payment system, electronic locker system, and chat/instant messaging functionality for the county’s website.

In Resolution 20-0173, the County Board made a special delegation of authority for the County Administrator to establish supplemental appropriations and transfer funds between departments relating to Hennepin County’s COVID-19 pandemic related funding awards; accordingly, no supplemental appropriation is specifically requested here.

Impact/Outcomes: Approval of this resolution will provide necessary support to continue core County functions during COVID-19 public health emergency.