Counties with less than 500,000 residents were not a part of the initial pandemic relief grants. When the rules were developed, lines were drawn by federal authorities.
Gov. Phil Murphy said that left a lot of people on the outside looking in.
“Twelve of our 21 counties were not eligible to receive federal coronavirus relief funding because their populations are below 500,000. However, together those 12 counties represent about a third of our total population as a state — about 3 million people,” he said.
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After some negotiation and a little arm-twisting, political pressure freed up this new money to split among the 12 counties.
It’ll cover pandemic costs they had to pay upfront, and also provide funding for additional coronavirus testing through the rest of the year.
About $9 million is en route to South Jersey, two-thirds of which is going to Gloucester and Burlington counties.
Deputy Freeholder Director Tom Pullion helped negotiate the memorandum of understanding approved by all 12 counties.
“The bulk of it is going to go to continued testing and anything related to COVID-19 follow-up,” he added.
Murphy said he is appreciative, but given the long-term effects of the pandemic, he insists the state and counties need a lot more.