AN ORDINANCE related to the City’s response to the 2020 COVID-19 crisis; amending Ordinance 126000, which adopted the 2020 Budget; accepting funding from non-City sources; changing appropriations to various departments and budget control levels, and from various funds in the Budget; declaring an emergency; and establishing an immediate effective date; all by a 3/4 vote of the City Council.
To be part of the Select Committee on Budgets. Agenda Item two Capital 119116 related the city's response to the 2020 COVID 19 crisis amending Ordinance 126000, which adopted the 2020 budget, accepting funding for non city sources, changing appropriations for various departments and budget control levels all from various funds in the budget. Declaring an emergency and establishing an immediate effective date all by three four of the City Council. The Committee recommends that the bill passed as amended with an abstention with from Council member the one. Thank you so much for that. Reading into the record, Madam Clerk. So, customer mosquitoes, chair of the committee. You are recognized in order to address this item. But before I do that, Madam Clerk, do I need to move for the passage of this bill? The committee recommendation is the recommendation that the city council will take up, which is the recommendation of the bill passed as amended. Do I need to make a formal motion? No. Thank you so much. Desmond Mosqueda, as chair of the committee, you are recognized in order to address this item. Wonderful. Thank you, Tom, for president. I also want to thank Councilmember Herbold, who is a co-sponsor of this ordinance. This ordinance would accept an appropriate $13 million in emergency housing and homelessness funds or COVID funding from the state of Washington. This legislation accepts and appropriates that fund that came from the Department of Commerce on March 27. And as I express my disappointment that we have been sitting on these funds from the state for so long, we have been eagerly awaiting this ordinance, which proposes funding for the grants to accept funds and spend them to respond to the emergency that COVID is presenting to frontline providers and vulnerable housing and very frontline providers for vulnerable housing, insecure or homeless populations. The ordinance finally came through at the end of June and we moved as quickly as we possibly could to get these long awaited funds out the door. I want to highlight a few really important components of this legislation. It includes funding for permanent supportive housing operations, dollars that would now be available, that would have come through revenues from the short term rental tax, which is now being dramatically affected by the impacts of the economic downturn. It's critical that we get funding to from supportive housing operators. It includes funding for food delivery for those permanent supportive housing sites and the individuals living in those homes. It includes funding for substantial, unexpected additional COVID related costs insured incurred by our Shelter and Hygiene Center and from an affordable housing provider. And we need to get these dollars out the door as possible. And it includes funding for shelter, densification and hygiene services and funding for senior food and meal delivery programs. Video and central staff provided a presentation on this legislation at the Budget Committee on Wednesday, and I'm enthusiastic about this. Thanks again for your ongoing work with us on this legislation. I wish we would have been able to get it out the door in March and here we are getting it out as fast as we possibly can. Looking forward to hearing back from those providers as soon as they get those dollars in hand. And even then we know that it's not enough which piece of our ongoing conversation about revenues to come soon, but happy to see this dollars being allocated now. Thank you, Councilor Mesquita, for that introduction of the bill. Councilmember Herbold. Is there anything that you'd like to add as a co-sponsor? Just echo councilmember mosquitoes comments about the urgency of getting these funds out. We know that providers have been dipping into their own reserves to cover the significant expenses associated with serving populations of people during COVID 19 and providing services in a way that they could not have planned to. While making extraordinary efforts to provide frontline care, frontline care and services to people hit hardest by the public health emergency and economic downturn. So again, really appreciate budget chair mosquito's commitment to moving this quickly rather than having this be part of the budget discussions. That will probably take us through, I believe early August in finalizing. Thank you so much, Councilmember Herbold, colleagues. Any other comments on the bill before we call it to a vote? KC Nunn. I just want to thank Councilmember Herbold and Mosqueda for their joint work on this particular bill. Really important effort here. And just want to thank you both for bringing it forward as soon as we possibly could. With that being said, we'll go ahead and close that debate. And I would ask that the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill. Herbold II Suarez. Hi. Louis. Hi. Morales. Hi. Let's get a. Hi Petersen. I do what. I. Strauss. President Gonzalez. Hi. Nine in favor and unopposed. Thank you, Madam Clerk. The bill passes and the chair will sign it. I That's what the caucuses affix my signature to the legislation. Next up is item three. Will the clerk please read the short title of item three into the record?