Escucha Mi Voz believes to have deal with city

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Escucha Mi Voz (Hear my voice) believe they have a tentative agreement with the West Liberty City Council’s Finance Committee to create a local Excluded Workers Fund with Federal American Rescue Plan money, to be decided Tuesday, June 7, at the council’s regular meeting which was held at the WeLead Economic Development Building at 119 East Third St., West Liberty.

The item on the meeting night’s agenda is #6E: “City Council Discussion and Appropriate Follow Up for Escucha Mi Voz of West Liberty ARPA Funds Request (Consent Vote)”.

Escucha Mi Voz Iowa members say they have a tentative agreement with the West Liberty Finance Committee to:

1. Invest $150,000 in ARPA money on a local Excluded Workers Fund;

2. Give $700 checks to approximately 200 West Liberty residents who were excluded from previous COVID-19 pandemic relief.

3. Reserve up to five percent to pay for administrative costs.

4. Write a resolution to Muscatine County asking them to contribute an equal amount of funding to increase the size of the checks to $1,400.

5. Create a task force composed of the city, Escucha Mi Voz West Liberty leaders, and the West Liberty Ministerial Association to meet and consent on a coordinated implementation plan.

Escucha Mi Voz West Liberty members marched from Saint Joseph Catholic Church to the city council meeting. West Liberty, a city of 3,750, has a majority Hispanic population, with a majority Hispanic city council, which received $522,000 in American Rescue Plan funding through the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund.

The $150,000 being asked would represent nearly 29 percent of the city's total ARPA funding, significantly higher than the eight percent investment Iowa City and Johnson County made in the Johnson County Direct Assistance Program, which included excluded workers but did not prioritize them.

The city council has been wrangling with the decision for months with the group and even though the Finance Committee has made the recommendation, it may not necessarily lead to a decision of the council to finance the funding Tuesday night. The group last addressed the city on May 17.

Unfortunately, the Index goes to press previous to the meeting on Tuesday night, so results of the vote, if taken by the council, will not be reported until next week’s issue.

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