BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) -- The clock is ticking for Alabama school districts to spend around $200 million in COVID-19 funding.
The money is from the Pandemic Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund. Alabama was allocated just under $2 billion in the latest round of funding.
It’s a use-it-or-lose-it situation. The money has been allocated to districts around the state, but it’s the individual school districts' decision on how it is spent. If the remaining ESSER funding is not obligated by Sept. 30, school districts will no longer have access to it.
Alabama State Superintendent of Education Eric Mackey said the situation isn’t as bad as it sounds.
“All the money is obligated for some program or some purchase," Mackey said. "There’s no money that is just left hanging out there."
According to Mackey, a majority of the leftover ESSER funding is program and expense surpluses.
“Let’s say you budget $200 for an item, and when you purchase the item, it comes in at $197," Mackey said. "Now, you have $3 left in that account."
Mackey said ESSER funding can be used for salaries, school enhancement projects and enriching student experiences.
“Things like summer programming, offering bigger better and more robust summer programs,” Mackey said.
Districts around the state have used money in different ways. Pelham City Schools received almost $6 million from the ESSER funding. It has expensed 88% of that funding
“Our remaining balance has already been accounted for and is being used to fund summer and after-school learning as well as interventionists and a roofing project," said a Pelham City Schools spokesperson in a statement.
Jefferson County Schools received $66 million in ESSER 3 funding. According to the Alabama State Department of Education, it still has $21 million to obligate before the end of the month.
A Jefferson County Schools spokesperson said the school system will obligate the remaining funding before the deadline.