YoCo Strong

CARES Act Funding

The York County Commissioners held a July 15, 2020 public meeting to discuss discussed the allocation process for the $40.5 million in Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding it received by way of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Utilizing the YoCo Strong Recovery Task Force report as guidance, the County will allocate funding across nine funding areas:

  • County Government
  • Local Government
  • Infrastructure / Broadband
  • Healthcare Services
  • Small Business & Restaurants
  • Non-Profit Organizations
  • Tourism & York Fair
  • County COVID PPE Supply Kits
  • Community Communication
  • Reserve
  • Administration

To deploy these funds in an expedited manner to meet the guidelines set forth by the federal government, and ensure compliance the County government has sought the assistance of the York County Economic Alliance to administer an application process for a select portion of this funding.

Similar to what has been done in sister counties, the York County government will employ the team at the YCEA to promote, administer, and ensure compliance of grant deployment. In Lancaster County, as an example, the Lancaster County Commissioners employed the assistance of the Economic Development Company of Lancaster and the Lancaster Chamber to assist its CARES Act funding deployment. The YCEA exists to provide administrative support for grant programming. As a certified economic development organization, it is reviewed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, it must follow and adhere with all guidelines and compliance obligations set forth by federal and state law.

Recovery Task Force Launched for the County of York

The York County Board of Commissioners announces a multi-faceted recovery strategy and subsequent task force, to evaluate COVID crisis management, mitigation, the recovery of our community, and the restart of our economy.

This YoCo STRONG Recovery Task Force will evaluate the response of the COVID crisis in our community, and determine what steps are necessary to ensure the continued health and safety of our citizenry. CLICK HERE FOR FULL RELEASE

On  Thursday, April 30 we hosted Zoom webinar focused on the COVID-19 economic recovery strategy for York County.  YCEA shared recently-commissioned, York County-specific economic modeling related to COVID’s impact and discuss how the modeling and other data points inform our strategy to restart the economy in the short term and make it more resilient in the future. Click here for a recording of that webinar, and accompanying documents..

YoCo Strong Recovery Task Force Update
Click here for the Task Force Report & Recommendations.
Click here for the executive summary of the report & recommendations. 
The executive summary is also available in Spanish here.
A webinar was held on June 10 reviewing the priority recommendations. Click here for a recording.

Developing Our Recovery Strategy

Following the 2007-2008 recession, York County’s recovery lagged behind the national average.  We need strategic, coordinated action to ensure we can accelerate our recovery following this crisis.

To that end, last week YCEA convened a group of business and civic leaders to discuss what we can do now to plan for the future.  Some short-term outcomes from that discussion are:

 

  • We are working with the economic consulting firm Fourth Economy to better understand the phases of recovery, produce models to help us understand COVID’s economic impact, and evaluate strategies for recovery. We are planning to share those findings in the coming weeks.

 

  • We are collaborating with private and public funders to evaluate existing and potential local pools of funding for immediate needs and recovery needs, especially for those businesses not currently well-served by federal and state funding programs.

 

  • We will continue to use the York County Economic Action Plan and its working groups as an existing structure to consider these issues by sector and channel the outcomes into an actionable plan.  To participate in a working group, please click here.

Federal and States Recovery Perspectives

FEDERAL
President Trump outlined his administration’s recommendations on a phased approach to reducing restrictions and restarting the national economy. The recommendations provide a framework for individual states to determine their own transition plans for restarting the economy.

STATE
Governor Wolf offered an update on the state’s approach to easing restrictions and opening additional businesses. Click here to read his plan.
The Standards of the Plan Include:

—Data-driven, criteria that is evidence based for regional reopening.

—Recommendations & Guidance for employers, individuals, and health care providers for assured accountability through reopening.

—Ensuring adequate Personal Protection Equipment and testing is available.

—A mechanism to put into place a monitor and surveillance program for virus outbreak mitigation.

—Protections for the most vulnerable populations of the state.

—Limitation on large gatherings unrelated to occupations during the reopening process.

The Governor plans to rollout more guidance next week, where he plans to include specific steps in which he hopes to partner with the legislature, agencies, experts in public health, and stakeholders.

Wolf announces a color-coded system that could allow some counties or regions to ease restrictions as soon as May 8.
First announcement gives construction industry the greenlight to resume in-person operations on Friday, May 1. Read the announcement here.

 

 

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