Santa Monica Gets $29.3 Million From Stimulus Bill

By Jack Simon

There is more for Santa Monica and Westside residents in the recently-passed $1.9 trillion federal stimulus bill than $1,400 checks.

The City of Santa Monica is slated to receive $29.3 million in federal grants, according to a report from the League of California Cities. Malibu will get $2.2 million, Culver City $7.3 million, Beverly Hills $6.3 million, while West Hollywood is expecting $6.8 million.

Santa Monica Interim City Manager Lane Dilg said the federal aid of $29.3 million will “help offset the substantial COVID-related revenue losses that the City budget has experienced over the first year of the pandemic.”

“The federal aid provides direct support to our Santa Monica businesses, residents, and children as we together recover from the pandemic and its many impacts,” Dilg said in a statement. “The American Rescue Plan will fast track community recovery by directly supporting our most vulnerable residents, as well as our local restaurants, addressing housing needs, and accelerating reopening of schools and the broader economy.”

Dilg noted that this one-time federal aid represents a small fraction of the revenues lost due to COVID-19 and approximately 4% of the City’s current operating budget but it will advance community priorities set by City Council through the biennial budget process.”

California cities are slated to receive more than $7 billion of the roughly $350 billion set aside for municipalities across the country to help offset shortfalls in revenues and to cover monies spent protecting public health, delivering essential services and helping small businesses survive during the pandemic.

Besides $1400 stimulus checks, the American Rescue Plan, signed by President Joe Biden, last Thursday, includes renewed weekly $300 federal payments to unemployed workers, expansion of the child tax credit, assistance to state, local and tribal governments, funding to reopen schools during the pandemic, and monies for coronavirus vaccines, among other items.

The state of California is slated to receive up to $42.6 billion for state, county and local governments, according state officials.

The city of Los Angeles is expected to receive a $1.35 billion, which would more than close the $750 million budget gap, while Los Angeles County is expecting $1.9 billion, according the League of California Cities, an organization that lobbied hard for federal aid for municipalities.

Other cities in the Southland receiving federal grants include El Segundo with $6.8 million, Manhattan Beach with $6.8 million, Redondo Beach with $7.1 million, Hermosa Beach with $3.6 million, and Inglewood with $35 million.

Across the state, major cities like San Diego are expecting $306 million while San Francisco may receive $465 million.

For a full list of California cities receiving federal grants, visit wwwcacities.org.