A Memo from Chester County Administrator Bobby Kagel,

Hi everyone.
 
I understand the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors (PSATS) put a call out to municipalities to contact their County Commissioners about accessing CARES Act funding.  The urgency of the message was more geared towards the 60 counties which did not receive a direct allocation from the federal government.  Chester County did receive a direct allocation from the federal government so the urgency and deadline referenced in PSATS message is not applicable.
 
With that said, we do understand the need to support municipalities.  As the PSATS message indicates, the CARES Act funding would be for items that:

• are not reimbursable by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA); and,
• were not already budgeted; and,
• were not donated; and,
• are directly related to the response to COVID-19; and,
• was expended between March 1, 2020 and December 30, 2020.

 
Revenue shortfalls or replacement of lost revenues are not eligible.
 
The first step is applying to FEMA, through the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA).  Once the determination of what is eligible to be reimbursed has been made, we’ll then undertake the process of identifying what wasn’t reimbursed and could potentially be funded through the County’s allocation of CARES Act.  Attached is the guidance from FEMA as to what would be eligible for reimbursement by FEMA.
 
Thirty-one Chester County municipalities have submitted information to PEMA to be able to access FEMA funds.  If you are unsure if your municipality has submitted or what your municipality may have submitted, please contact your Emergency Management Coordinator (EMC).
 
Please create a spreadsheet which details the items/services you will seek reimbursement through the County CARES funding and the amount you paid.  Again, none of these costs can have been previously planned/budgeted and they can’t be eligible for reimbursement by FEMA.  Submit the spreadsheet to Bill Turner in our Department of Emergency Services at wturner@chesco.org.  This will give us an idea the magnitude of costs and allow us to better gauge whether we will be able to provide reimbursement.
 
And, as in any emergency, please ensure you have thorough documentation of the need/justification for the expense, documentation of the expense, and documentation that the expense was not previously budgeted.
 
Thanks for your continued partnership as we navigate this situation.

Bobby
 
 
Robert J. Kagel, County Administrator
County of Chester, Commissioners’ Office
313 West Market Street, Suite 6202
West Chester, PA  19380
(610) 344-6026
rkagel@chesco.org

Attachment:

FACT SHEET -- Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic: Eligible Emergency Protective Measures