Last week, the House and Senate passed the end-of-the-year “Omnibus” package to fund the federal government through Fiscal Year 2021. Embedded into the package was a $900 billion COVID-19 economic relief program. Late Sunday evening, the President signed into law the lengthy and expansive package.

The text of the final package is available here; a division-by-division summary of the appropriations provisions is here; a division-by-division summary of the coronavirus relief provisions is here; and a division-by-division of the authorizing matters is here.

Broadly, the COVID stimulus package includes $284 billion for first and second forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans; $32 billion for vaccine procurement and distribution; $22 billion for states for virus testing and contract tracing; $45 billion for transportation industries; a second round of direct payments worth up to $600 per adult and child (much lower than what the President has suggested); an additional $300 per week for all workers receiving unemployment benefits through March 14, 2021; $82 billion to make schools and colleges safer for in-person learning; and $13 billion to increase food and nutrition benefits by 15%. 

Of note to RCRC and rural counties:

  • No State and Local COVID Aid

Removed from the package is $160 billion for state and local aid and liability protections; however, the package provides an additional year of eligibility for expenses under the CARES Coronavirus Relief Fund that was enacted in March. 

  • Broadband COVID Aid

The package includes $3.2 billion in emergency funds for low-income families to access broadband through an Federal Communications Commission fund as well as a $300 million grant program to fund broadband in rural areas. The grants would be issued to qualifying partnerships between state and local governments and fixed broadband providers. Priority for grants would be given to networks that would reach the most unserved consumers.

  • Agriculture Assistance

The package provides $11.18 billion for COVID-related assistance to support agricultural producers, growers, processors, specialty crops, non-specialty crops, dairy, livestock, poultry, and contract livestock. In particular, the bill provides $100 million for Specialty Crop Block Grants and provides $225 million in supplemental payments to producers of specialty crops if they lost their crop in 2019.

 

As mentioned, the package funds the federal government through October 1, 2021.  Provisions of interest for RCRC included in the spending portion of the package include: 

  • $732 million for rural broadband - the highest level in history - including $635 million for the ReConnect broadband pilot for unserved and underserved areas, as well as $60 million for Distance Learning and Telemedicine grants.
  • $3.9 billion for rural development programs, as well as more than $38.1 billion in loans for rural housing, rural utilities, and rural businesses, in order to assist in building sustainable rural infrastructure for the modern economy and help create an environment for economic growth and opportunity. 
  • $3.3 billion for FEMA grant programs to assist states and localities to prepare for, mitigate, and respond to disasters.
  • The allocation of the full $900 million now permanently available from the Land and Water Conservation Fund as a result of enactment of the Great American Outdoors Act. These allocations include $405 million for the federal program, $360 million for the state grants program, and $135 million for other non-federal grant programs.
  • $5.27 billion for Wildland Fire Management (WFM) which includes $2.35 billion in cap-adjusted fire suppression funding. Funding includes a shift of $387 million to Forest Service (non-fire) due to the budget restructure and the creation of the “Forest Service Operations” account. After adjusting for this shift, the bill provides a programmatic increase of $104 million for WFM.

 

For the most part, the FY 2021 funding package represents a continuation of past cannabis policy and statutes that have been annually renewed through the appropriations process such as a ban on Washington, D.C. legalizing recreational sales. Nonetheless, despite a push from the marijuana and financial services industries, the bill does not contain any language to shield banks that service cannabis businesses from being penalized by regulators.  Importantly, the bill does extend a 2014 pilot program for hemp until 2022—a win for stakeholders who have been concerned about its expiration.