Riverside County’s regulators on Tuesday approved $ 5.99 million to pay nearly two dozen hotels and motels across the county that participated in the Project Roomkey program, initiated in 2020, to address transients with COVID-19 exposure risks to prove.

In a 5-0 vote without comment, the board of directors instructed Bruce Barton, director of the business continuity management department, to honor the voucher program for the period May to December 2020.

A total of 23 hotels and motels have been listed on county documents and the largest amount owed is $ 760,762 which will be distributed to the Quality Inn of Palm Springs.

“The Project Roomkey program made it possible to accommodate residents at risk during the coronavirus,” said an EMD statement that was posted on the board of directors’ agenda. “Local hotels and motels also benefited from the program as they could provide accommodation while their businesses were affected by the impact of public health orders.”

Every hotel and motel that participated in the program had to set flat rates for rooms, according to the EMD, made available to Roomkey recipients, most of whom were homeless.

In some cases, officials said the facilities provided housing to those infected and those recovering from COVID-19.

All money that is paid out to the hotels and motels is drawn from federal funds to the district as part of tax relief packages.

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