Local Government

Under Title V of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security(CARES) Act, the Social Security Act was amended to establish the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF), a $150 billion appropriation used to make payments for specified uses to states, Tribal governments, territories, and large units of local government. The total CRF funding allocated to the state of Tennessee is approximately $2.65 billion.

The U.S. Treasury managed the initial distribution of these funds to states and jurisdictions with populations above 500,000 using a relative state population proportion methodology, as defined in the Act.

The 3 Tennessee jurisdictions with populations above 500,000 that received their allocation of the $2.65 billion directly from the Treasury include:

  • Memphis city
  • Nashville-Davidson metropolitan government
  • Shelby County

The State of Tennessee is making available funds from the State’s CRF balance to eligible local governments on a $15 per capita basis. These funds will be reserved for local governments that did not receive a direct CRF appropriation.

Funding Breakdown

  • Tennessee Received: $2.65 billion
  • Tennessee jurisdictions received direct U.S. Treasury payments (populations over 500,000): $285 million
  • Tennessee local government jurisdictions to receive payments (populations under 500,000): $115 million

Next Steps

If you are one of the 3 jurisdictions receiving funds directly from the U.S. Treasury, The State of Tennessee will facilitate a planning process in coordination with the Financial Stimulus Accountability Group to identify and plan for any necessary costs that may be uncovered by the direct appropriation.

A jurisdiction located in a county that did receive a direct payment from the U.S. Treasury?Please work directly with your county to obtain information regarding CRF funding eligibility.

A jurisdiction that did not receive a direct payment from the U.S. Treasury and located in a county or city that DID NOT receive a direct payment?The county or city designated official must review, sign and submit the Terms and Conditions located on the application portal. Payments will be processed through the portal.

Funding Administration

The Department of Finance & Administration will manage the administration and distribution of the funds. Recipients will submit requests for advance and reimbursement through this portal.

The State encourages all recipients to read the CARES Act guidance released by The U.S. Department of the Treasury via their website. The State of Tennessee has the authority to use the funds provided under the CRF to cover eligible costs of the State. The CARES Act provides that payments from the CRF may only be used to cover costs that:

  1. are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19);
  2. were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020 (the date of enactment of the CARES Act) for the State or government; and
  3. were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 30, 2020.

FAQ Update

Please see FAQ page for updated FAQs, which will be updated periodically. The updated date will be posted on the FAQ page as the FAQs are updated.

FEMA PA Guidance

Guidance related to FEMA PA and Federal Assistance for Emergency Managers can be found at https://www.tn.gov/tema/emergency-community/covid-19-guidance.html.