Westmoreland County issues final covid-relief grants

More than $615,000 in covid relief grants were handed out Tuesday to local volunteer fire departments and emergency medical service units as Westmoreland County exhausted its share of federal stimulus money to help struggling businesses, nonprofits and municipalities amid the ongoing pandemic.

Commissioners awarded 24 volunteer fire departments and 10 emergency medical service companies grants to restore lost revenues and cover expenses related to the coronavirus response. Grants to fire departments were capped at $25,000 and emergency medical service awards were limited to $15,000.

Additional grants will be made early next year from county coffers to nonprofit fire companies and emergency service organizations that did not qualify to receive money provided under the CARES Act, commissioners said.

Recipients of Tuesday’s grants, along with all of the small businesses, nonprofit agencies and municipalities that received funds earlier this year, will be listed on the county’s website.

The county spent all of the $31.5 million it received in federal stimulus money.

Commissioners this summer originally projected that small businesses, nonprofits and municipalities would each receive $10 million, but those plans were changed in the second half of the year.

Finance Director Meghan McCandless said the county used more than half of the federal funds to pay for its own costs associated with the pandemic, including $2.8 million for supplies such as personal protective equipment, $1.3 million for computer upgrades to allow staff to work remotely and another nearly $12.3 million to pay salaries of front-line workers and additional pandemic pay for employees in departments exposed to higher risks of contracting the coronavirus. The county also used $134,000 to install mobile hotspots at local libraries, a project that officials said Tuesday had been completed.

In addition to the fire and emergency medical services grants issued Tuesday, commissioners previously awarded small businesses more than $6.4 million and $1.8 million went to nonprofit agencies. Municipalities were awarded nearly $906,000.

The county also used stimulus money to grant Excela Health $5 million while $200,000 was earmarked to pay administrative costs.

“We did what we could to help our small businesses and nonprofits to get by,” said Commissioner Sean Kertes.

Commissioner Doug Chew said some recipients might not have been able continue had it not been for the grants.

“A strong testament is all the ‘thank yous’ we all received, thanking us for helping keeping their heads above water,” Chew said.