Pledge to work with Walz Administration to cover costs of COVID-19

(ST. PAUL, MN) –  The Minnesota Senate passed bipartisan legislation today to provide oversight of the $1.9 billion in Federal stimulus money delivered to the state as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) passed on March 27, 2020. Sen. Julie Rosen (R-Vernon Center) pledged to work with the Walz Administration on how the money would be used to cover existing and future costs used to fight the COVID-19 virus in Minnesota.

“The Federal government moved very fast to get this stimulus money sent to the states and we need to make sure it gets spent to cover our costs for COVID and help us prepare for the impending budget deficit in 2021,” said Rosen. “I look forward to working with Governor Walz and Commissioner Frans at Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB) to use the Federal money to help our state get through this challenge.”

The money to states is part of the Federal CARES Act to cover costs that:

• Are necessary expenditures incurred due to COVID-19.
• Were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of the date of enactment of this section.
• Were incurred during the period that begins March 1, 2020, and ends Dec. 30, 2020.

In addition to state funding, the CARES act also includes funding for large counties, cities, and townships to help them with their COVID related costs. 

The Senate bill was passed out of a hearing last week conducted remotely. “We’ve shown that we will work with the Governor to prepare the state and take care of our residents,” Rosen said at the time. “And we have been proven to be nimble with our response to get funds out right away.” The Senate has already passed four separate funding bills to respond and prepare for COVID totaling over $500 million. Three of the COVID funding bills passed with unanimous support.