The entrance to One Montgomery Plaza in Norristown, where many county offices are housed. Credit: Montgomery County Commissioners
Action recommended to 're-obligate the remaining $24.9 million into projects that align with the Recovery Plan'
Montgomery County Commissioners recommitted nearly $25 million in federal COVID-19 relief dollars just days before a mandatory obligation deadline.
The unanimous action to revise the county’s existing Recovery Plan was taken on Dec. 19, the county commissioners’ final meeting of 2024. Montgomery County received $161.4 million of the $1.9 trillion federal stimulus package dubbed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Monies for eligible projects must be obligated by Dec. 31, 2024 and spent by Dec. 31, 2026.
“These changes to the original plan are intended to maximize the effectiveness of the investments you have made to strengthen our community as part of the approved Recovery Plan,” said Eli Gilman, process manager with the Montgomery County Recovery Office.
The county’s Recovery Plan was adopted in August 2022 after a five-month process made up of public input, proposal submissions and evaluations.
“The process needed to be community formed, transparent, equitable, and accessible to all, and that the investments we had supported communities that were hardest hit by the pandemic or had been historically marginalized or underserved,” Gilman said, stressing how “these investments were transformative.”
The Recovery Office authorized 134 projects, which Gilman said “ran the gamut of all of the various investment opportunities.” Those initiatives included child care, behavioral and public health, food security, government services, and workforce development. Separate grant programs were also developed for child care, emergency medical services, small businesses, and volunteer fire companies, Gilman said.
Around $82.6 million of the pandemic funds have been spent as of the year’s third quarter, Gilman said, which translated to the completion of 30 projects and another 50 that were considered more than 50 percent finished.
“We identified $53.9 million that is still on track to be spent on time, but we also identified $24.9 million in spending that’s not likely to be spent by the December 2026 deadline,” Gilman said.
Breaking down the nearly seven-figure funds, Gilman urged county commissioners to instead redirect $19.4 million from 11 county projects, $3.1 million “from four projects from subrecipients” and $2.4 million from three projects that have been canceled.
“It’s our recommendation … that we re-obligate the remaining $24.9 million into projects that align with the Recovery Plan,” Gilman said. “This maximizes the flexibility in our spending, reduces the administrative burden and the reporting burden, both on the office specifically, but on the county in general, and also for county projects that would be able to be funded for longer this provides the opportunity for general fund costs savings.”
Montgomery County Commissioners’ Chairwoman Jamila Winder then moved to amend the county’s recovery plan, the action seconded by Montgomery County Commissioners’ Vice Chairman Neil Makhija.
The next Montgomery County Board of Commissioners meeting is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025 on the eighth floor of One Montgomery Plaza, 425 Swede St., Norristown. Those interested in attending the meeting can also do so virtually. Visit montgomerycountypa.gov for more information.
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