2021 Louisiana Laws
Revised Statutes
Title 39 - Public Finance
§100.43. Coronavirus Local Recovery Allocation Program

RS 100.43 - Coronavirus Local Recovery Allocation Program

A. There is hereby created the Coronavirus Local Recovery Allocation Program to be administered by the commissioner of the division of administration, in consultation with the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, in accordance with the provisions of this Subpart.

B. There is hereby created and established in the state treasury, as a special fund, the Coronavirus Local Recovery allocation fund, hereinafter referred to as the "allocation fund" for the purpose of providing monies to local governments for the expenditures incurred and in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

C.(1) Pursuant to legislative appropriation, the treasurer is hereby authorized and directed to deposit in and credit to the allocation fund five hundred fifty-five million four hundred seventy-eight thousand seven hundred four dollars of the federal monies allocated to Louisiana pursuant to Section 5001 of the CARES Act. The monies in the allocation fund shall be invested in the same manner as monies in the state general fund. Interest earned on the investment of monies in the recovery fund shall be deposited in and credited to the allocation fund. Except as provided in this Section and if applicable under federal guidelines, unexpended and unencumbered monies in the allocation fund shall remain in the allocation fund. Monies in the allocation fund shall be appropriated and used solely as provided in this Section.

(2) The treasurer shall transfer and deposit twenty-five million dollars of the monies in the allocation fund to the Critical Infrastructure Workers Hazard Pay Rebate Fund in the state treasury.

D. From the initial amount deposited into and credited to the allocation fund, an amount equal to one-half of one percent shall be available for appropriation to GOHSEP to be used for administering the program. GOHSEP is hereby authorized to use staff as necessary from the office of community development for administrative and technical support. An additional amount equal to one-half of one percent of the initial amount deposited into the fund shall be available to be appropriated to the legislative auditor for the costs of reviewing the program. The remaining monies in the allocation fund shall be available to GOHSEP to provide funds to political subdivisions in Fiscal Years 2020 and 2021 pursuant to the allocation program as established in this Section.

E. The commissioner of administration, in consultation with GOHSEP and the office of community development in the division of administration, shall develop procedures to govern the administration of the program, and determine the maximum allocation of monies in the allocation fund available for each parish to submit eligible applications for funds. The commissioner may promulgate emergency rules, as necessary for the administration of this program. The commissioner shall institute the program no later than June 5, 2020. The commissioner shall cause information regarding the program to be published on the websites of the state, the division of administration, and GOHSEP. The commissioner shall notify each parish of the provisions herein.

F. The commissioner of administration shall develop a method to determine the maximum allocation for each parish based on total population of the parish and the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 within the parish. The commissioner shall notify each applicant that there is no guarantee that the amount of funds received by the local government units of a parish shall equal the maximum amount allocated to the parish. If on November 1, 2020, any parish has an unobligated portion of their allocation, the unobligated portion may be moved by the commissioner of administration to other parishes which have used all of their allocation and have remaining submissions, subject to approval of the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget.

G. The monies allocated to local government units in each parish shall only be for eligible expenses as provided in the CARES Act.

H. Within fifteen calendar days after receiving a submission for reimbursement pursuant to this Section, GOHSEP and the division of administration shall review and, if eligible, approve the submission, and forward the approved eligible expenditures to GOHSEP for disbursement. Funds for verified claims shall be disbursed by GOHSEP within five business days of receipt by GOSHEP.

I. Any claims for expenses incurred after December 30, 2020, or submitted to the division of administration after January 31, 2021, shall be ineligible for payment pursuant to the provisions of the CARES Act.

J. No later than the fifteenth day of each month, the director of GOHSEP and the commissioner of administration jointly shall submit a report to the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget detailing by parish the amounts requested for reimbursement pursuant to this Section, the amounts actually reimbursed, and the average time for disbursing funds to each parish.

K. Each local governmental unit shall provide a certification, on a form developed by the commissioner of administration and GOHSEP, signed by the authorized chief executive of the local government that the proposed uses of the funds are consistent with the CARES Act. The certification shall also provide that the local government unit shall hold the state harmless and indemnify the state in the event that payments were misappropriated, converted, and/or spent for any purpose other than those authorized by and in accordance with the CARES Act as determined by any executive, administrative, or judicial body of competent jurisdiction.

L. Any unobligated balance in the fund on June 30, 2021, shall be transferred to the State Coronavirus Relief Fund.

Acts 2020, No. 311, §1, eff. June 12, 2020; Acts 2020, 1st Ex. Sess. No. 10, §6, eff. July 9, 2020, and see Act; Acts 2021, No. 114, §9, eff. June 7, 2021.

NOTE: See Acts 2020, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 10, §13, re: eff. date of Paragraph (C)(2).