Hattiesburg City Council members took the opportunity during a May 3 work session to discuss how to utilize approximately $13 million the city is expected to receive from the American Rescue Plan, a stimulus package issued by the federal government to offset revenue losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mississippi is set to receive $1.8 billion from the American Rescue Plan, part of $195 in federal funds that is expected to be distributed throughout all 50 states. Ward 2 Councilwoman Deborah Delgado kicked off the work session by suggesting a portion of the funds could be used to improve broadband Internet access in the city, which she said is particularly lacking in low-income areas in the city.
“Our greatest challenge for broadband access was during the time our children were home (during the pandemic), having to be educated remotely,” she said. “Many of those children, particularly those in public housing, did not have broadband access.
“In terms of the city being able to take care of all of our children, I want to make sure that the City of Hattiesburg uses this opportunity to make sure that we have broadband availability for the education of our children, and making sure they live in a home that has what every other home may have access to because of different economic situations.”
As an example of that, Delgado said she has been attempting to live stream council meetings – particularly during the pandemic – but the broadband in the Jackie Dole Sherrill Community Center has been insufficient to produce a smooth broadcast without interruption.
“It would seem that the City of Hattiesburg itself, with our demand for broadband and Internet access, that we wouldn’t have that kind of experience,” she said. “This provides some concerns, particularly when we have an opportunity to do something better with the funding we have been given.”
Delgado also mentioned street paving in Ward 2, saying several streets in that area have not received much-needed work because of lack of funding. With the federal stimulus money, however, Delgado said the opportunity is now there to complete that task.
“In the conversations that we’ve had on the state level, we’re being told that we need to think in terms of long-range impact of that coming in,” she said. “I guess the message is similar to what we’re going to do with broadband … particularly in those critical areas of Ward 2 that have not experienced the level of paving that we want to see, because we have not had a budget that was sufficient to do that.
“Now we are going to have this opportunity to do a more complete job.”
Mayor Toby Barker said legislation in the plan allows the Department of Treasury two months to convene with city administration about the funds, and officials are currently waiting on guidance from that department before any decisions are finalized.
“Once we have further notification of what’s allowed and what’s not allowed, we will come to an upcoming work session,” Barker said. “We will then create an opportunity for public input.”
According to Mississippi Today, Mississippi’s tax collections have continued to grow during the pandemic. Through February, which is the seventh month of the fiscal year, the state has collected $338.5 million, or 9.5% more than during the same time last year.
Because of that, Mississippi’s policymakers do not have to use the American Rescue Plan funds solely to make up for revenue lost because of the pandemic, as some states will have to do.
