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26 <br /> CARES Act Funds Allocated by the County <br /> The County received two funding allocations through the Corona Virus Aid, Relief, and <br /> Economic Security Act or CARES Act. CARES Act funds were distributed to counties based on <br /> population. CARES Act funding must be used to fund expenses directly related to the County's <br /> response to the pandemic. These funds cannot be used to supplant currently budgeted <br /> expenses or to replace revenues such as sales tax or occupancy tax that have suffered as a <br /> result of the pandemic. The CARES Act funds must be used by December 31, 2020, or they will <br /> be reverted to the State. <br /> Orange County's allocation in each round of funding was $2,665,753 and $2,881,614 for <br /> a total of$5,547,367. Of that total amount, the County retained $3.2 million while $2.3 million <br /> was distributed to Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Hillsborough, and Mebane based on a per capita <br /> allocation. <br /> For the first round of funding, the Towns submitted requests for the use of funds to the <br /> County. In general, approximately $400,000 was used for emergency housing assistance, <br /> $600,000 was allocated to personal protective equipment, $500,000 was allocated to personnel <br /> expenses, and the remaining amount for technology to support remote working and economic <br /> support to local businesses. For the second round of funding, municipalities are required to <br /> report their use of funds to the County by the end of August. <br /> Approximately $1.4 million or 42% of the County's total CARES Act allocation is dedicated to <br /> support housing needs and prevent evictions and foreclosures. <br /> • Another $1.2 million or 36% is being used to protect employees and facilitate remote work. <br /> • The remaining funds are allocated to other services directly impacted by the pandemic <br /> including: o Assisting residents who must navigate the Courthouse under new safety <br /> protocols and access community services differently, <br /> • Acquiring and distributing food, including locally raised dairy and produce products, <br /> • Supporting childcare and reemployment services, <br /> • Reimbursing the County for employee leave time taken by employees who are required to <br /> isolate or quarantine, <br /> • Reimagining and producing tourism and marketing materials in response to changing travel <br /> restrictions and preferences, <br /> • Supplementing the revaluation effort that was delayed during stay at home orders, and <br /> • Funding consulting services to plan for the County's long term recovery and resiliency. <br /> COVID-19 Related Funds Awarded to Specific Programs <br /> In addition to the CARES Act funding directed to the County for local distribution decisions, other <br /> CARES Act or Corona Virus related funding has been directed to specific County functions: <br /> • The Department on Aging received an additional $200,000 from the Area Agency on Aging <br /> for food distribution programs. <br /> • The Board of Elections received $153,766 to prepare for and respond to impact of COVID- <br /> 19 on the 2020 election cycle. These efforts include cleaning and sanitizing polling places <br /> and supporting an anticipated increase in mail-in ballots. <br /> • The Partnership to End Homelessness was awarded a COVID-19 Emergency Solutions <br /> Grant to hire a 1.0 FTE Rapid Rehousing Case Manager to expedite permanent housing <br /> solutions for residents who are homeless or in danger of becoming homeless. The grant runs <br /> through June 30, 2022. <br /> • The Partnership to End Homelessness and the Criminal Justice Resource Department were <br /> awarded an additional COVID related Emergency Solutions Grant to implement a Harm <br /> Reduction and Street Outreach program.These funds will support a 1.0 FTE Harm Reduction <br />