CHARLESTON, W.Va. — With a federal deadline approaching Dec. 30, state records
show West Virginia still has $819,769,216 of its $1.25 billion in federal CARES
Act money.
Gov. Jim Justice has allocated the money, much of it to cover
unemployment claims, but the bulk still appears banked rather than
spent.
Justice on Friday made reference to watching invoices and
monitoring expenses, so it’s likely the bills are still in process for some of
West Virginia’s spending.
West Virginia would need to spend $34 million a
day over the next 24 days to come in on deadline.
Asked earlier in the
week if he is concerned whether money that is allocated but not spent could be
clawed back by the federal government, the governor said not to
worry.
“All my experts believe we are on rock solid ground. The money is
not going to be clawed back,” Justice said. “We’ve got this. It’s
good.”
MetroNews reached out to the U.S. Department of Treasury last week
to seek clarification.
A spokeswoman responded, the Coronavirus Relief
Fund money must be spent no later than December 30, but there is a period for
paying bills after December 30.
Performance or delivery generally must
take place prior to December 30 for that to count, although Treasury allows for
reasonable delays beyond December 30 as long as the contract was intended to be
concluded prior to that date.
That’s a summary of the guidance that
Treasury has in place for states like West Virginia.
With all the money
West Virginia still has at the state Board of Investments, that would be a lot
of last-second spending.
States and local governments around the country
have had a watchful eye on the deadline — especially local governments that
have had to wait for money to trickle down from the state level.
Alabama
is in a similar position as West Virginia, with $800 million to spend before the
deadline. That state is also expressing confidence the money will be spent on
time, though.
The National Governors Association is aware of the approaching
deadline but also is hopeful for a new covid relief deal in Congress to support
states.
“You are correct in that the deadline for recipients (including
states) to spend Coronavirus Relief Funds is Dec. 30. We have advocated for more
flexibility in how states may use the funds,” stated James Nash, spokesman for
NGA.
“However our main priority is new unrestricted federal aid to
states that recognizes significant and ongoing expenses (such as emergency
response, hybrid learning models, Medicaid) and revenue losses related to the
pandemic economic downturn With Congress debating such a relief bill now, we
feel there’s a good opportunity to pass aid that allows states to continue
serving Americans during what’s expected to be a challenging period ahead.”