Coronavirus Relief Fund Appropriations - Updated 12/9/2020

By House Appropriations Committee Staff , | 3 years ago

Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) 

• School Safety and Security Grants - $150 million 

  • Uses include: purchasing of cleaning and sanitizing products that meet CDC and DOH criteria, training and professional development of staff on sanitation and minimizing the spread of infectious diseases, purchasing of equipment (including PPE, thermometers, infrared cameras and other necessary items), modification of existing areas to effectuate appropriate social distancing, providing mental health services and supports, purchasing educational technology for distance learning, and other health and safety programs, items or services necessary to address the COVID-19 disaster emergency.

  • Note: $49.8 million from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund is also used for these school health and safety grants for public schools.  

  • Distribution is available here. 

Department of Agriculture - (PDA) 

• Food Security & Relief - $40 million 

  • $20 million for the State Food Purchase Program 

    • Uses include: funding county-level grants and administrative costs for purchasing food to supplement other state and federal food assistance programs for Pennsylvanians who are at risk for hunger. 

      • Of that amount, $5 million is allocated to Pennsylvania Agricultural Surplus System 

  •  $20 million for the Dairy Assistance Program 

    • Assistance based on discarded milk after 3/6/2020, with application deadline of 9/30/2020 

    • Uses include: minimum payment of $1,500 to dairy farmers who have experienced a loss during the governor’s disaster declaration, as a result of the need to discard excess milk. Farmer assistance based on volume of discarded milk.

    • Of that amount, $5 million is allocated to Pennsylvania Agricultural Surplus System

      • Uses include: provide the commonwealth's emergency food providers with resources to support Pennsylvania's agricultural producers, aiding in their efforts to get even more locally-produced and sourced commodities into the hands of those in need 

Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED)

• County Block Grant - $625 Million 

  • Uses include: offset direct county response/planning, municipality assistance, small business grants, nonprofit assistance, broadband internet 

• Cultural and Museum Preservation Grant Program - $20 million 

  • Driven out through the CFA 

  • Uses include: general museum, children's museum, history museum or historical site, military or maritime museum, accredited zoo, planetarium, science or technology center, orchestra, art museum, performing arts organization 

  • Applications will be accepted June 29, 2020 through July 31, 2020. Guideline and applications can be found here. 

• Statewide Small Business Assistance - $225 million

  • Driven out through 17 state certified Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) 

  • A list of the COVID- 19 Small Business Grant Recipients can be found here Updated

• Hazard Pay - $50 million  

  • Uses include: hazard pay for direct, full time and part- time employees earning less than $20/hour. Funds may only be used to pay hazard pay for eligible employees from August 16, 2020 through October 24, 2020. Furthermore, funding can be used for Administrative costs, which cannot exceed 5 percent of the grant total. 

  • A list of the COVID Hazard Pay Awardees can be found here Updated

•  Food Access Initiative - $10 million

Department of Education (PDE) 

• Pre-K Counts Program - $7 million; Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program - $2 million (click here for allocations) 

  • Funds were non-competitively prorated to each 2020/21 grantee based upon share of full-day-equivalent students (works out to be $286 per FTE for Pre-K Counts and $309 per FTE for HSSAP). This was done to expedite getting funds to the grantees as funds must be expended by November 30, 2020 and used specifically for COVID preparedness and relief. Lead agencies are expected to pass through grants amounts to partner agencies.  

• See PA Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) section for information regarding school health and safety grants 

Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE)

• State System of Higher Education - $30 million 

  • Uses include: help for the 14 universities with costs incurred as a result of the COVID-19 emergency 

  • Distributed proportionally based on 2019 fall headcount enrollment 

  • Payments distributed to universities by July 15, 2020. 

Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA)

• PHEAA State Grant Program - $30 million

  • Will help increase the maximum need-based award to $4,525 (up from $4,123) 

• Institutional Assistance Grants - $5 million 

• Higher Education for the Disadvantaged (Act 101 Program) - $5 million

• Student Loan Interest Forbearance Program - $2.2 million 

  • Uses include: applies to PHEAA-held private loans for Pennsylvania borrowers not in default 

  • Eligible borrowers will automatically be put into forbearance until September 30, 2020 

Department of Health (DOH)

• Community-Based Health Care Centers - $10 million (click here for estimated distribution amounts) 

  • Uses include: may only be used to cover necessary COVID-19 related costs not otherwise reimbursed by Federal, State or other sources of funds and must be used for costs incurred between March 1, 2020, and November 30, 2020 

• Vaccine, Treatment and Therapy Development for Qualified Biotech - $10 million (applications accepted 7/14/20-7/24/20, awards announced 8/27/2020)

Department of Human Services (DHS) 

• Long-Term Living Programs - $692 million

  • Uses include: 

    • $175 million for health collaboratives (applications accepted 6/10/20-6/25/20, awards announced 7/14/20), 

    • $245 million for nonpublic and county nursing homes,

      • $196 million for MA days (7/1/20 pay date, click here for distribution amounts), 

      • $49 million for licensed beds (7/1/20 pay date for enrolled MA providers, providers not enrolled in MA must submit FEIN for payment, click here for distribution amounts) 

    • $140 million for personal assistance services,

      • $112 million for Agency Providers (7/15/20 pay date, click here for distribution amounts), 

      • $28 million for Participant-Directed Employer Model 

        • DHS expects direct care workers will begin to receive payments during the weeks of August 16th and August 23rd.  Payments will vary depending on hours worked.  Average payment is $1,730 per direct care worker.  

    • $50 million for personal care homes and assisted living residences, 

      • $45 million based on occupancy (click here for distribution amounts, providers must submit FEIN for payment), 

      • $5 million based on SSI residents (click here for distribution amounts, providers must submit FEIN for payment) 

    • $13 million for adult day care services (7/15/20 pay date, click here for distribution amounts), 

    • $1 million for residential habilitation (7/1/20 pay date, click here for distribution amounts),

    • $10 million for LIFE providers (7/1/20 pay date, click here for distribution amounts),

    • $50 million for Community HealthChoices (7/1/20 pay date, click here for distribution amounts), 

    • $8 million for ventilator or tracheostomy providers (7/8/20 pay date, click here for distribution amounts) 

• Intellectual Disabilities/Autism Programs - $260 million (click here for distribution amounts) 

• Child Care Services - $116 million (Click here for distribution amounts)

  • Uses include: for providers, to be distributed based on the results of a study of the economic impacts of child care closures during the COVID-19 emergency

• Critical Access Hospitals - $10 million (7/1/20 pay date, click here for distribution amounts) 

• Domestic Violence Programs - $10 million Updated

  • Funds Distributed to Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence for grants to local providers

• Homeless Assistance Services - $10 million (click here for distribution amounts) 

• Legal Services - $8 million Updated

  • Funds distributed to Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network

Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) 

• Fire Company and EMS Grant Program - $50 million 

  • $44 million for fire companies 

  • $6 million for EMS companies 

  • Applications will be accepted July 6, 2020 through August 7, 2020. The online applications can be found here.   

• Health Care System Assistance - $50 million 

  • Uses include: can be used to acquire medical equipment and supplies for health care entities to meet urgent patient and staff needs to address surge demand -- entities include: hospitals, nursing facilities and emergency medical services 

  • Note: this appropriation reverses the transfer made from various funds to purchase these supplies 

Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) 

• Mortgage and Rental Assistance - $175 million 

  • No more than $25 million for mortgage relief 

  • Uses include: mortgagors and renters may be eligible if they became unemployed after March 1, 2020, or their annual household income was reduced by 30 percent or more 

  • Application opened June 29 (Applications and more information can be found here). The application period ended November 4, 2020 Updated

  • Available to landlords, renters, mortgagees and mortgagors 

  • Maximum awards: 

    • Renters: $750 per month for six months 

    • Mortgagors: $1,000 per month for six months 

Act 17A and Act 114 – November 23, 2020

The General Assembly appropriated $1.33 billion in the fall budget package to offset salary and benefit costs in several agencies, focused mostly in the Department of Criminal Justice and Pennsylvania State Police.

Fiscal Year 2020/21 Coronavirus Relief Fund Uses - Fall 2020 Budget
(amounts in thousands)
Agency	Appropriation	Amount
Criminal Justice	State Correctional Institutions	968,000
Criminal Justice	Inmate Medical Care	95,000
Health	General Government Operations	4,000
Health	State Health Care Centers	10,000
Human Services	Youth Development Centers	30,000
State Police	General Government Operations	225,970
TOTAL		1,332,970