State appropriators meet Wednesday to craft a legislative package to spend what’s left of roughly $1.25 billion in coronavirus relief money.
About $750 million remains unspent.
But, the state has put that money to use.
The state received the stimulus money in April. While it waited for the Treasury Department guidance on how to spend it, the money was placed into a cash flow portfolio—it was invested.
Since April, interest from that $1.25 billion has generated $4.7 million in interest for the state.
Mark Quasney is the state economist for the South Dakota Bureau of Finance and Management. He says Treasury guidance states the interest money raised can get put into the state’s general fund and spent how the state sees fit.
“Depending on how the money is managed and utilized that the interest does not have to be used in the same way as the actual fund itself,” Quasney says. “So, that interest could then be used by the states.”
Quasney says they got a slightly better return on the cash, as opposed to having it sit around in a savings or checking account.
Governor Kristi Noem is calling for a special legislative session on Monday, October 5th. Lawmakers will consider proposals on how to spend the remaining dollars.
