Law and Order in the Ozarks (Part CXXXII)/Coronavirus in rural America (Part CXL): More on federal COVID relief funds flowing into county

The May 19, 2021 edition of the NewtonCounty Times sheds some light on the issue I blogged about a few days ago:  how can and will federal COVID-19 relief funds--$1.5 million coming into the county--be spent?  

The story reports that Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson has established the American Rescue Plan Steering Committee, which is comprised of eight state cabinet officials or their designees, along with three state senators and three state representatives. The committee will guide an executive/legislative effort to manage funding from the federal American Rescue Plan.  

The total amount coming into the state is $5 billion or $1.57 billion, depending on which sentence of the news story one credits.  

Re federal restrictions on the funding, the governor said, having read the U.S. Treasury regulations, "The purposes are very broad.  There's a lot of flexibility."  His comments continued: 

This is such a unique time that it's important that we proceed through this in a planned fashion, that we proceed through it in a coordinated way in coordination with our city and county counterparts that receive separate funds and that we coordinate with our different agencies in education that receive separate American Rescue Plan funds.

When the federal  money runs out, we don't have any state money to supplement it. 

Elsewhere, the story reports that the money can be used for capital investments and infrastructure, even to help the state Health Department prepare for a future pandemic.   The governor is encouraging spending on "capital investments like broadband that won't incur long-term spending and debt for the state, as opposed to developing new programs." 

Nothing about this report is county specific, but the prior related story indicated that Newton County will receive $1.5 million.  I hope the newspaper will track how this money gets spent.