Bipartisan Effort Brings Coronavirus Relief To Morris County

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ - A bipartisan effort has secured $7.1 million for Morris County and $1.8 million for Sussex County through the state’s allocation of the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

Governor Phil Murphy announced las week that the remaining 12 counties in New Jersey who did not previously receive CRF funding would be awarded $37 million to reimburse them for COVID-19 response efforts and support future public health measures like testing for vulnerable populations. Additional federal funding for the counties will be available through FEMA.

U.S. Representative Mikie Sherrill started working with Senator Richard J. Codey and Senator Anthony Bucco this spring to urge Murphy to provide direct relief from the CRF to Morris County.

“I know from so many conversations over the last five months that leaders in Morris and Sussex have worked hard to take care of our residents and address the public health threat of COVID-19,” said Sherrill. “The fight against coronavirus requires partnership across all levels of government. Governor Murphy, Senators Codey, Bucco, and Oroho, alongside our Morris and Sussex County Freeholders and Administrators John Bonnani and Greg Poff, have been instrumental in working to get support to our counties to address coronavirus. Today’s announcement reflects a true collaborative effort. The funding, which uses federal Coronavirus Relief Fund dollars established by the CARES Act, will reimburse the counties for past efforts and will continue to be invested in future public health measures. More needs to be done, and I remain focused on advocating in Congress for further direct support for our state, our counties, and our municipalities.”

In early June, she brought together Senator Richard Codey, Bucco, Senator Steven V. Oroho and the Freeholder Directors and Administrators from Morris and Sussex Counties for a meeting with the Governor’s Office to highlight the work of the counties during the crisis and support funding.

“I’m proud to have been a part of this bipartisan effort to secure $37 million in coronavirus relief funding for Morris County and the 11 other New Jersey counties that didn’t get direct aid from the federal government under the CARES Act,” said Bucco. “The $7 million received by Morris County, the most of any of the 12 eligible counties, will allow the County to continue its coronavirus response efforts without negatively impacting property taxpayers. While more is still needed, this is a good first step.”

Morris County Administrator John Bonanni thanked the state and Murphy for this grant.

"We also need to acknowledge that we were very fortunate to have had the support of Senator Bucco, Congresswoman Sherrill, and Senator Codey advocating to the Governor’s Office to secure this funding,” he said “Without question their joint efforts helped the Governor to recognize how unequitable a rigid population requirement was in determining the distribution of financial aid in New Jersey, which has been hardest hit, second only to New York, by the pandemic.”

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