As volunteer fire departments and other emergency service organizations struggle to maintain operations during the ongoing pandemic, U.S. Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) last week sponsored a bipartisan bill to expand the permissible uses of federal pandemic relief funds.
“The economic impact of COVID-19 has been hardest on organizations that already operate on razor-thin margins,” said Rep. Thompson. “Congress created a relief fund, which has yet to be exhausted. As a volunteer firefighter, I know we must act immediately to provide more flexibility and extend these deadlines, otherwise volunteer organizations and non-profits will be left out in the cold.”
The Coronavirus Relief Fund Expansion Act of 2020, H.R. 8950, which Rep. Thompson introduced on Dec. 10 with cosponsor U.S. Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-PA), would extend the deadline to spend COVID-19 relief funds by one year to Dec. 31, 2021, according to a bill summary provided by the congressman’s office.
Additionally, the bill would permit non-profit and emergency service organizations to use funds to replace lost, delayed or decreased revenues as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the summary.
First responders across the nation are concerned that the current language in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is ambiguous, said Jerry Brant, Second Assistant Chief of the Patton Fire Company No. 1 in Patton, Pa., and board member of the Pennsylvania Fire and Emergency Services Institute.
“We are worried fire and EMS departments have not and will not utilize these funds because of a lack of detail on how this financial assistance may be legally expended by our agencies,” Brant said. “This legislation would simplify this section of the CARES Act and alleviate these concerns. We applaud Congressman Thompson for his efforts and plead with other members of Congress to join him in passing this critical legislation.”
H.R. 8950 has been referred for consideration to the U.S. House Oversight and Reform Committee.