The Haines Borough is slated to receive at least $490,000 through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the new pandemic economic recovery bill signed into law on March 11, but officials said it’s too soon to predict how funds will be spent because it’s still uncertain how much the borough will receive.
“We are continuing to monitor the rollout of these funds. We think we might be entitled to more than is currently being shown since we are also considered to be in the ‘other non-counties’ category. After we hear a final answer on that question, we will start our discussion about how to use the funds,” Mayor Douglas Olerud said.
Unlike the CARES Act, the coronavirus relief bill passed in the spring of 2020, the American Rescue Plan includes money dedicated to specific communities across the nation. The bill distinguishes between “metro cities” like Anchorage, “counties” like the Kenai Peninsula Borough, and “other non-counties,” small cities like Gustavus and Homer.
Municipal experts in Alaska believe Haines and a few other consolidated boroughs in the state were miscategorized.
“There are at least four Alaska boroughs that should have been counted as cities, too, as there is a provision for consolidated county-city structures. So Haines should be on both the county list, which they are, and then the city list, which they aren’t,” Alaska Municipal League direct Nils Andreassen said. “The same is true for Skagway, Yakutat and Petersburg.”
Andreassen said the municipal league has notified the state’s federal delegation. If they are successful in correcting the misclassification, the funding Haines receives directly through the rescue plan would roughly double.
Interim borough manager Alekka Fullerton said the direct funding for municipalities is one of many ways the bill will channel money into the community.
“If we can successfully have them redefine Haines, we’ll get roughly one million dollars, and then there’s the question of whether we get anything from the state’s portion,” she said.
Last year, although the borough didn’t receive money directly through the CARES Act, the state opted to distribute $569 million of the total $1.25 billion it received in direct relief for municipalities. Haines received just over $4 million. Roughly $250,000 of these funds remain unspent.
Under the American Rescue Plan, the State of Alaska is slated to receive $1.1 billion. Other funds coming to Alaska include money for increased unemployment insurance payments, $1,400 direct payments to individuals, and other money going to schools, emergency rental assistance and child care.