Moses Lake receives new recovery funds

MOSES LAKE — When Washington’s Office of Financial Management sent word that Moses Lake must return all documents to receive further coronavirus fiscal recovery funds by June 18, 11 days after correspondence, city staffers acted quickly.

The first round of payment, more than $3.3 million, arrived Sunday.

Administered first through the federal American Rescue Plan Act Funding Resolution 3858 passed earlier this year, towns with a population of fewer than 50,000 received funding through state distribution.

The second half of the funding should arrive in June 2022.

The four broad uses for the grant are to respond to COVID-19 impacts via assistance to households, small businesses and nonprofits, provide premium pay for essential workers, replace lost public sector revenue and to invest in water, sewer and broadband infrastructure.

Because of the quick turnaround of these funds, city staffers have not finalized an official budget for this spending, but will bring it to city council when they do.

Included in this budget will likely be more resources to cater to the various languages used in the Moses Lake community, said City Manager Allison Williams at last Tuesday’s city council meeting.

The city must spend the funds by Dec. 31, 2024.

Because this is a “significant amount of money,” according to the Moses Lake agenda, to be spent in three and a half years, the funds were accepted in two votes. The first ratified the acceptance of the grant, and the second approved the Local Fiscal Recovery Fund: a place to deposit the grant to ease tracking for the likelihood of audit.

Both were passed by the city council unanimously, 7-0.