April 19, 2024
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Will County panel votes to allocate portion of $133 million in pandemic aid

Officials said the allocations did not provide a “blank check” to the local governments

By Alex Ortiz
Will County Board meet fully in person for the first time in nearly two years at the Will County Office Building. Thursday, Mar. 17, 2022, in Joliet.

The Will County Board appears in this Thursday, Mar. 17, 2022, file photo at the Will County Office Building in Joliet. (Gary Middendorf - gmiddendorf@shawmedia.com/Gary Middendorf)

Will County Board members took another step in the allocation of about $133 million in federal pandemic aid during a recent meeting.

The board’s Executive Committee voted on Thursday to allocate a portion of the funds to help local township governments, fire protection districts and the county’s Forest Preserve District. The funds were available to the county to distribute through the American Rescue Plan, which Congress approved last year.

Board Speaker Mimi Cowan, D-Naperville, said this was the first allocation of the federal money the committee has approved.

The committee approved $3.5 million to be split up among the county’s 24 township governments. Another $2.5 million was allocated toward fire protection districts and another $3.5 million for the Forest Preserve District of Will County.

County Board members also serve as the commissioners for the forest preserve district.

Cowan said the allocations did not provide a “blank check” to the governments, but instead they will be able to apply for funds up to the amount allocated. Local governments will have to apply and be approved to ensure whatever project they wish to use the funds to meet federal guidelines.

Individual municipal governments received their own funds from the American Rescue Plan. County officials have been discussing how to use its share of the federal aid to help other units of government which were affected by the pandemic and are trying to plan for challenges ahead.

“[We’re] looking at institutions that [have provided] critical services during the last few years,” Cowan said during Thursday’s meeting.

She used the example of allocating funds to libraries which could use them to pay for online services and expand access to educational resources for residents.

“So how do we help those libraries bolster their services, so that should something like [a pandemic] happen again, they are ready to meet it,” Cowan said.

The Executive Committee has approved general parameters on how to spend the $133 million in federal funds.

The county said formal applications are being developed and will be released soon but did not specify when in its news release.