Clock ticking for county to distribute CARES Act funds

Last edited 12:47 p.m., Dec. 16, 2020

With $34.4 million in approved federal cash, Greene County in May was awarded the most Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act funds to disperse in the five-county Springfield metropolitan statistical area. The final deadline is nearing as 2020 comes to a close.

The Greene County Commission has until Dec. 30 to distribute around $4 million in remaining funds, a task for which community activist Lyle Foster was hired as grants administrator in June.

With the most recent grant rounds on Dec. 15 and Dec. 11, the county has distributed more than $30 million, according to Springfield Business Journal research. County officials could not be reached for comment by deadline on the exact total distributed so far.

The commission yesterday gave approval to $934,046 in reserve grant funds to local public school districts and the city of Springfield, according to a news release. The city was selected for a $434,046 grant and Springfield Public Schools was chosen for $327,303 in funds.

In the small-business category, commissioners yesterday approved $110,357 worth of applications. The largest amount of $15,000 was awarded to Spring Valley Veterinary Hospital.

The federal government in May distributed $55 million in CARES Act funds to the Springfield MSA. After Greene County’s $34.4 million, Christian County received the second-highest amount, at $10.4 million, according to past reporting.