A group of Washington residents who did not receive the federal COVID stimulus checks and faced economic and other hardships due to the pandemic are returning to the Washington City Council this Tuesday to request use of American Rescue Plan Act funds.

Escucha Mi Voz Washington first spoke to the council this January to ask that they use some of the approximate $1.08 million the city has received to distribute $1,400 checks to each Washington resident that was excluded from the federal stimulus checks. Based on U.S. Census data the group estimates 140 residents that would qualify, amounting to over $200,000 needed. The group has since met informally with Mayor Jaron Rosien, City Administrator Deanna McCusker, City Council Members Millie Youngquist and Illa Earnest and incoming Council Member Bethany Glinsmann on this issue.

David Goodner of the Iowa City Catholic Worker House explained to Youngquist and Earnest last week that the city could look at Johnson County’s excluded worker fund application system, “If Washington wanted to, they could duplicate the Johnson County program with only one change which is to prioritize people with multiple negative economic impacts. If you’re unemployed, you qualify, if you did not get a stimulus check you qualify. The problem is that lumps so many people in and then there’s not enough funding. If we prioritize so that multiple impacts can go first, somebody who was laid off or lost income and did not get a stimulus check would have two or more negative impacts and then be at the top of the line.”

Earnest expressed to the group that she and Youngquist realize the importance of the decision they’re making regarding the ARPA funds, and that they are taking this seriously. Washington has around $300,00 left unspent of its ARPA funds. Premium pay for essential workers is one of the ways listed that the funds can be spent, and so far the city has used them for water and sewer infrastructure and camera equipment upgrades for the police department.