Berkeley Township Officials Request More Coronavirus Aid

BERKELEY, NJ — Berkeley officials are fighting to get the Township more federal coronavirus aid. Mayor Carmen Amato has communicated with lawmakers in the Senate and House to plead for expansion of municipalities like his.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) set aside $150 billion in state stabilization funds, which also extended to cities and counties with more than 500,000 people.

Senators Bob Menendez and Bill Cassidy drafted the State and Municipal Aid for Recovery and Transition (SMART) Act last month. The bill proposed reducing the population threshold for towns from 500,000 to 50,000.

But Berkeley Township didn't qualify for that aid because of its population of 45,000. Federal officials made some progress, Amato says.

Amato was among many stakeholders around the nation who spoke with Menendez's staff about amending the population requirement. The Township's council also passed a resolution imploring Menendez and Cassidy to revisit the threshold.

Menendez and Cassidy reintroduced bipartisan legislation Monday that would eliminate the population threshold required for federal coronavirus aid.

New Jersey Coronavirus Updates: Don't miss local and statewide announcements about novel coronavirus precautions. Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters.

"I immediately jumped on this early to let our federal legislators know the threshold of population, 50,000, needed to be reduced or eliminated," Amato told Patch, "as all municipalities regardless of size are all going to be affected by COVID-19. I'm pleased that the final bill was changed."

If the SMART Act becomes law, it would also retroactively amend CARES ACT funding provisions to let it cover lost revenue. That includes the $100 million Ocean County received.

Additionally, the law would loosen restrictions the United States Treasury placed after the CARES Act passed. The Treasury initially directed that the state stabilization funds go toward additional costs associated with the coronavirus but not toward loss of revenue connected to the virus.

Amato anticipates a loss in tax collection because of the economy and possibly delays in State aid payments. Berkeley extended its own quarterly tax deadline to June 1. Read more: Berkeley Extends Quarterly Tax Deadline To June 1

Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

Click here to get Patch email notifications on this or other local news articles or get Patch breaking news alerts sent right to your phone with our app. Download here. Follow Berkeley Patch on Facebook. Have a news tip? Email josh.bakan@patch.com.