GovWin SLED Coronavirus Recon

General 

• (Virginia) Gov. Northam proposes delaying skill machine ban to help fund COVID-19 relief, asks for dedicated school funding from casinos
  • Over the weekend, Gov. Ralph Northam sent bills that would legalize casinos and sports betting, and ban skill machines back to the General Assembly with amendments. The proposed bills would lead to revenue from machines that would generate over $150 in new funds to be used for a COVID-19 relief fund.
• Gov. Abbott extends Texas state disaster declaration in response to COVID-19 pandemic
  • Governor Greg Abbott has extended his disaster declaration for all counties in Texas. The declaration, originally issued on March 13 in response to the coronavirus outbreak, makes emergency resources more readily available for Texans during the pandemic.
• U-M a hub for Michigan emergency department collaborative responding to COVID-19
  • In 2015, the Michigan Emergency Department Improvement Collaborative (MEDIC) was established so that hospital emergency departments across the state could coordinate and learn from each other.
  • MEDIC has sponsored a series of town hall-style conference calls to convene professionals across the state to report on the experiences of their local emergency department and their response
• Northam freezes new spending in the state budget amid coronavirus pandemic
  • Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D), caught between an economy cratering from covid-19 and the ambitions of newly empowered Democrats, froze all new spending in the state budget and delayed an increase to the state's minimum wage, part of a flurry of amendments his senior staff announced Sunday.
• (Delaware) Virtual government a tough new normal in pandemic
  • Elected officials must figure out how to conduct public business from largely private locations.
  • Gov. Carney’s April 3 order authorized that all meetings of public bodies be conducted electronically until further notice, either by means of telephone conference call or video-conference call

Funding & Economic Impact 

• (Alaska) Dunleavy slices AMHS funding by two-thirds
  • The Governor sliced $15.5 million from the ferry system appropriation for the 2020-2021 budget
  • He also vetoed $12.5 million for the University of Alaska system, $4.3 million in pre-kindergarten grants, $2.7 million for public broadcasting radio and TV stations, and a $1 billion transfer of Permanent Fund earnings to the constitutionally protected principal of the fund
• (Virginia) Northam wants to put a hold on $2 billion in new state spending and delay minimum wage hike
  • Northam is asking the General Assembly to approve freezes of $874.6 million in the fiscal year that starts July 1 and $1.4 billion in the next fiscal year
  • Halting new spending means no raises for teachers or state employees, as well as no new spending on infrastructure such as roads
• (Arizona) State spending millions for medical supplies to treat COVID-19
  • The State is allocating $10 million for ventilators, $8.5 million for masks, $500,000 for isolation gowns and $100,000 for hand sanitizer
  • The governor is also making $5.8 million directly available to counties and $1.2 million to tribes for local preparedness response
• Missouri governor signs spending bill to fight pandemic
  • The supplemental budget bill allocates nearly $6 billion in federal stimulus money to fight the health and economic ramifications for the pandemic
  • The money will be used to purchase additional personal protective equipment for first responders, help develop medical facilities beyond traditional hospitals, and provide aid to hard-hit local governments
• Ohio think tank recommends nearly $3B to be used for COVID-19 fight

Technology

• Apple and Google partner on COVID-19 contact tracing technology
  • Google and Apple are announcing a joint effort to enable the use of Bluetooth technology to help governments and health agencies reduce the spread of the virus, with user privacy and security central to the design
• BCT Partners Launches CUSP - a Free Big Data Platform that Pinpoints Where COVID-19 Funding Is Needed Most
  • BCT Partners announces the launch of the COVID-19 Urgent Service Provider (CUSP) Support Tool.  CUSP is the first big data platform designed to specifically evaluate the capacity of nonprofit service providers to meet the needs of the local communities they serve.  
• Vendor-tracking software firm wields pandemic in latest pitch to states

Higher Education

• State urges Hawaii’s Colleges to disburse emergency cash grants for students impacted by COVID-19 pandemic
  • The Hawaii Post-Secondary Education Authorization Program will be requesting authorized institutions to submit information on how they are disbursing the U.S. Department of Education cash grants.
• COVID-19 funding opportunity for W.Va. higher education
  • Senators Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito announced potential funding on Friday for all West Virignia colleges and universities.
• (Boston University) Coronavirus May Force Boston University To Delay Fall Semester
  • In-person classes have already been cancelled for the summer sessions and BU is monitoring COVID updates on how the spring semester unfolds in order to make decisions on the Fall semester.
  • The University’s Recovery Plan recognizes the possibility that the beginning of the fall term may have to be delayed, and that a January reopening may be necessary, in which case summer 2021 academics would replace those now planned for fall 2020. For the full recovery plan go here.
• (Miami University & Drexel University) Students File Class Action Seeking Tuition Reimbursement
  • Students attending Miami and Drexel Universities are trying to take their respective institutions to court, arguing they should be reimbursed for costs including tuition after campuses closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
• (University of Arizona) Tucson area coronavirus developments, April 13: Here's what we know
  • The University of Arizona's administration is 'cautiously optimistic' the fall semester will resume in-person.

K-12 Education

• (Wisconsin) Construction picks up speed at Baraboo middle school while closed due to coronavirus
  • When they closed, district leaders told project managers to take advantage of the fact that students and staff wouldn’t be in the building and do as much work as possible and the school board approved a list of essential contractors.
  • If construction can take advantage of schools being closed this could keep projects closer to timelines and keep local businesses with active customers.
• (New York City DOE/NYC Public Schools) NYC Mayor Says Schools Are Closed For Academic Year — But Governor Overrules Him
  • With worries over how to continue online learning for students as well as their safety NYC public schools considers closing for the remainder of its academic year.
  • The decision has yet to be finalized but will likely serve as a paving point for many other schools to follow suit given NYC is the largest public school system in the country.
• (North Carolina) Duke Energy awards $810K in grants for K-12 education, nonprofits amid COVID-19 crisis
  • The Duke Energy Foundation has announced $810,000 in statewide grants — including more than $305,000 directly to the Charlotte region — to bolster education program and nonprofits with operations threatened by the coronavirus.
• (Indiana) Schools, donors rush to fill 'digital divide' and keep students learning during closures
  • A group of Indianapolis-area philanthropies last week announced a $2.6 million fund to support eLearning efforts in all of Marion County’s public schools.
• Many Arizona Students Lack Internet, Schools Improvise

Health Care

• Tennessee Medicaid funding request for COVID-19 patients likely to die
  • Tennessee’s request for Medicaid funding to treat COVID-19 patients appears to be on life support as the federal government looks to the CARES Act to distribute billions of crisis dollars to state governments.
• (Missouri) Local public health agencies ask state for funds
  • The Missouri Public Health Association asked state legislators to revise its $6.2 billion COVID-19 relief bill to earmark funding specifically for local public health departments.
• (Maryland) UMSOM Launches Large-Scale COVID-19 Testing Plan
  • The University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) announced on Friday the launch of a large-scale COVID-19 testing initiative that will significantly expand testing capability over the coming weeks, enabled by new funding of $2.5 million from the state of Maryland.
• HEALTH CARE BRIEFING: Virus Testing Capacity Seen Ramping Up
  • The U.S. is working on four forms of diagnostics it needs to re-open the economy: widespread surveillance to cate new flare-ups; testing of people who have specific symptoms; contact-tracing for confirmed cases; and antibody testing to know who’s recovered from the virus

Social Services 

• Washington State Bans Eviction, Fails On Unemployment Payments

Justice/Public Safety

• (Minnesota) Minn. legislature passes workers' comp reform bill for LEOs, COs, first responders
  • The Minnesota Legislature has passed legislation that provides occupational protections for certain workers who contract COVID-19 while on the job. The provisions of the bill expire on May 1, 2021.
• (Maryland) Baltimore police union told there could be pay cuts, layoffs because of COVID-19 budget shortfall
  • The Baltimore Police Department has three possible options to reduce spending amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Arguments are made that the cuts are asking for too much at a crucial time for the department. The city would like need to see some relief money in order to avoid layoffs or pay cuts.
• Congress Hears Options—And Concerns—for Using Smartphone Data to Fight COVID-19

Transportation

• Reduced vehicle traffic from stay-at-home orders imperils road funding across U.S.
  • Reduced traffic volume is expected to cause a sharp drop in state revenue from transit related income.
• (Ohio) SORTA resumes fare collection
  • The Cincinnati Metro has resumed fare collection. The decision was made in the interest of public safety citing the prior free fare policy may have encouraged people to not adhere to the stay-at-home order and venture out in the community.
• Global EV sales will drop 43% in 2020 due to COVID-19, lower oil prices: WoodMac
  • Global electronic vehicle (EV) sales are anticipated to see a significant drop in 2020. A strong rebound for EV sales is possible in 2021 as nations begin to get a handle on the virus and the economy.
• (Nevada) Washoe County RTC continues to fast track Virginia Street Project construction
  • Construction operations are accelerating in Washoe County on several projects due to business closures in the area.

Public Utilities

• 'No existing playbook': COVID-19 forcing NV Energy, NYPA and other utilities to get creative
  • As more utility employees are forced to work remotely, the industry is learning how to keep capital projects on track and provide critical services.