BREAKING! Hypothetical: THE ODDS-ARE-MORE-THAN-EVEN Likely It's Not Only One County in Michigan...It could be Maricopa County Here in Arizona

When there's million$$$$$$ of American Rescue Plan monies out there - up for grabs in federal Covid Relief funds intended to get disbursed for essential 'front-line' workers  - that's a whole lotta temptation

Michigan Politicians, All Republicans, Pocket Thousands in Bonuses From Federal Covid Relief Funds

 

Only after public outcry, a lawsuit and a statement from the county prosecutor calling their actions illegal, did the county commissioners agree to return all of the fund

By Peter Wade  

Rolling Stone

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Republican elected officials in a Michigan county voted to allot themselves hefty payments in the form of “Covid hazard pay” from American Rescue Plan funds designated for essential workers, only returning the funds under public pressure and a lawsuit.

The Shiawassee County commissioners awarded themselves as much as $25,000 each for their in-person work during the Covid-19 pandemic while lower-income county employees received between $1,000 and $2,000 each. The funds were part of $557,000 of American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds earmarked for hazard pay, and elected officials allocated “the bulk” of the funds to themselves, the Argus-Press in Ossowa, Mich., reported. But those funds were intended for workers whose jobs put them at risk of contracting coronavirus and whose jobs were greatly affected by the pandemic.

Six top-level officials, including Board of Commissioners Chairman Jeremy Root and Sheriff Brian BeGole received $25,000 each last week. Other elected and appointed officials received $10,000 or $12,500 payments. Four other commissioners received $5,000 each . . .

These payments to elected and appointed officials likely violate both the Michigan constitution and the federal rules for ARP funds. A Treasury Department spokesperson told MLive-The Flint Journal that the agency’s interim final rules for the ARP specify that the funds should prioritize low-income and essential workers who were at the greatest risk of contracting Covid-19 due to their jobs.

Caving to the backlash, the county commissioners released a statement on Friday announcing they and all other elected officials who received payments will voluntarily return the funds. “Since the payments were made, confusion about the nature of these funds has run rampant,” the commissioners said. “The commissioners deeply regret that this gesture has been misinterpreted and have unanimously decided to voluntarily return the funds to the county, pending additional guidance from the state of Michigan.”