CARES Act allocations are based on city population and amount to about $55 per capita, according to Commissioners Court documents. For Richardson, the payment will be roughly $4.2 million.
Twenty percent of the money will be provided upfront, while the remaining 80% will be paid out once a city applies for reimbursement.
Cities can use the money to soften the blow of economic hardships brought on by the virus, such as by setting up housing assistance programs or providing grants and loans to small businesses.
Commissioner JJ Koch advocated for an increase in the upfront percentage and argued that some cities need the money sooner rather than later.
“We could end up doing a lot more good ... by having a larger outlay initially,” he said.
Others were hesitant to put the county on the line for more than 20% and said it made more sense to stick with state guidelines on how to disburse the funding.
“Cities also recognize they have an accountability responsibility, and ... following along with the governor's guidance on this ... makes a lot of sense,” Commissioner Theresa Daniel said.
Population estimates used to determine each city’s payout were made by the North Central Texas Council of Governments.
Commissioners heard from cities that these numbers differ from census and state demographer estimates. As a result, the county has tasked Charles Reed, its assistant administrator of government affairs, to return in two weeks with a solution of how to true up the population discrepancies. This may cause some cities to get more or less money than they are currently slated to receive.
In the meantime, cities will receive the 20% payout outlined by Dallas County. In Richardson, this amounts to $840,477.
Richcardson has already received $2.4 million in CARES Act funding from Collin County, according to Deputy City Manager Don Magner.
