City spends virus relief funds as New Mexico cases mount
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Albuquerque city officials said Thursday they’ve used all of the coronavirus relief money received earlier this year from the federal government.
City finance officials said the municipal government has spent or otherwise applied $150 million in relief aid in an effort to meet the original Dec. 30 spending deadline.
The city focused much of the funding on shifting employees from jobs that were limited by the pandemic into roles directly related to supporting relief efforts. The city applied $120 million, or 80% of the funding, to personnel costs.
In addition to personnel, the city used the money on direct economic relief, including $11.2 million for business grants and $2.5 million in emergency grants for vulnerable residents and $1 million for nonprofit grants. Another $3 million went to assist people living on the street, including hand-washing stations and portable toilets.
The money helped the city avoid employee cuts and service reductions and expand operations, including eviction prevention, meal delivery for homebound seniors and operating costs associated with increased use of city parks.
“Without this money, it would’ve been very, very difficult,” Chief Financial Officer Sanjay Bhakta told the Albuquerque Journal. “I can’t imagine what kind of cuts we would have to make (without it).”
Federal legislation had restricted how local governments could spend the money, requiring that it go only to expenditures related to COVID-19 that were not already included in budgets before March 27.
While the city has not completed the account reconciliation outlining all final spending from the relief law, other planned expenditures included mobile Wi-Fi units, assistance for organizations helping domestic violence survivors, grants for artists and a new projector for the city’s emergency operations center.
New Mexico health officials on Thursday reported an additional 1,684 confirmed COVID-19 infections, pushing the statewide total since the pandemic began to 142,864. Another 41 deaths were reported, leaving the state to finish the year with 2,477 people who succumbed to the virus.
State officials continued to encourage people to get tested and to sign up for a vaccination, as planning is underway for distribution once more doses become available.
“I’m as glad to say goodbye to 2020 as anybody,” Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said in a tweet. “But please be careful celebrating tonight. COVID hasn’t gone anywhere. Don’t risk your health — or your neighbor’s health.”
Traditional New Year's celebrations around the state, such as the annual “Chile Drop" in Las Cruces, were taking place virtually.