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12 December 30, 2020. Please see Treasury’s Guidance as updated on June 30 regarding when a cost is considered to be incurred for purposes of the requirement that expenses be incurred within the covered period. 55. How does a government address the requirement that the allowable expenditures are not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020, once the government enters its new budget year on July 1, 2020 (for governments with June 30 fiscal year ends) or October 1, 2020 (for governments with September 30 year ends)? As provided in the Guidance, the “most recently approved” budget refers to the enacted budget for the relevant fiscal period for the particular government, without taking into account subsequent supplemental appropriations enacted or other budgetary adjustments made by that government in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency. A cost is not considered to have been accounted for in a budget merely because it could be met using a budgetary stabilization fund, rainy day fund, or similar reserve account. Furthermore, the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020, provides the spending baseline against which expenditures should be compared for purposes of determining whether they may be covered using payments from the Fund. This spending baseline will carry forward to a subsequent budget year if a Fund recipient enters a different budget year between March 27, 2020 and December 30, 2020. The spending baseline may be carried forward without adjustment for inflation. 56. Does the National Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C. § 4321 et seq, (NEPA) apply to projects supported by payments from the Fund? NEPA does not apply to Treasury’s administration of the Fund. Projects supported with payments from the Fund may still be subject to NEPA review if they are also funded by other federal financial assistance programs 57. Public universities have incurred expenses associated with providing refunds to students for education-related expenses, including tuition, room and board, meal plans, and other fees (such as activities fees). Are these types of public university student refunds eligible uses of Fund payments? If the responsible government official determines that expenses incurred to refund eligible higher education expenses are necessary and would be incurred due to the public health emergency, then such expenses would be eligible as long as the expenses satisfy the other criteria set forth in section 601(d) of the Social Security Act. Eligible higher education expenses may include, in the reasonable judgment of the responsible government official, refunds to students for tuition, room and board, meal plan, and other fees (such as activities fees). Fund payments may not be used for expenses that have been or will be reimbursed by another federal program (including, for example, the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund administered by the Department of Education). 58. May payments from the Fund be used for real property acquisition and improvements and to purchase equipment to address the COVID-19 public health emergency? The expenses of acquiring or improving real property and of acquiring equipment (e.g., vehicles) may be covered with payments from the Fund in certain cases. For example, Treasury’s initial guidance referenced coverage of the costs of establishing temporary public medical facilities and other measures to increase COVID-19 treatment capacity, including related construction costs, as an eligible use of funds. Any such use must be consistent with the requirements of section 601(d) of the Social Security Act as added by the CARES Act. 298 298