Hoover council president proposes city funding for COVID-19 testing of residents, business employees

Hoover City Council President Gene Smith on Tuesday said he wants the city to provide free COVID-19 testing for Hoover residents and split the cost of testing for employees of Hoover businesses.

Smith proposed that the city partner with medical facilities to test every Hoover resident who wants to be tested for the disease. He projects that about a third of the 90,000 or so Hoover residents would opt for the testing and estimates that would cost the city about $1.5 million.

“This amount can be easily reallocated now by defunding non-essential purchases and projects,” Smith said in a video he released Tuesday night.

In addition, the city could partner with Hoover businesses to split the cost of testing for their employees.

“There is no stronger display of commitment to our businesses than putting our money where our mouth is,” he said.

Smith said he’s not sure the city has a firm grasp on the number of people employed in Hoover because the city doesn’t have an occupational tax. But if there were roughly 8,000 brick and mortar stores with an average of about 20 employees each, and one-third of those businesses opted to have their employees tested, it likely would cost the city about $1.4 million, he said. He thinks the city can find that kind of money by making cuts in other places.

The whole idea is to use optional testing of residents and employees to make people feel safe enough to return to normal shopping and dining habits so businesses can regain steam sooner rather than later.

“We will be the most tested city in Alabama regarding residents and businesses, which would lead to Hoover continuing to be viewed as one of the safest cities in Alabama, which will undoubtedly open our doors for business,” Smith said. “I’m trying to be a little proactive instead of reactive.”

There’s also a possibility the city could get some federal money to help offset some of the financial troubles brought on by COVID-19, Smith said. While he’s not generally a big fan of relying on federal government handouts, the situation today is different.

“It’s like a hurricane that hit the entire country at once,” Smith said. “It’s not destroying buildings, but it has removed most all the customers.”

It could take the country 18 months to two years to recover from all of this, he said.

Smith said he plans to present his proposal to the Hoover City Council for discussion at its next meeting on May 4. He would like to receive input from the mayor, other council members and the public, he said. He already has received some very positive reactions to his proposal and some very negative reactions.

It could be that other people come up with better ideas than this, but he looks forward to hearing what others have to say, he said.

Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato said Wednesday afternoon he had not yet had a chance to see Smith’s video concerning the testing idea and wanted to review that before commenting.

John Greene, president pro tem of the City Council, said he would not be in favor of spending taxpayer dollars in that manner.

If someone tests negative for COVID-19 one day, there’s no guarantee they would still test negative two days later, he said. “It’s a false sense of security to me."

Councilman John Lyda said the Families First Act passed by Congress requires insurance companies to provide COVID-19 testing for free. He believes the vast majority of Hoover residents are covered by insurance plans and therefore doesn’t see city funding of the tests to be necessary.

The city certainly could make a special effort to encourage people to get tested, Lyda said.

Brocato said the city of Hoover’s team has been busy and focused, noting that today he participated in a call with the League of Municipalities to discuss stimulus packages for cities and small businesses.

He also has continued to work on the city’s financial plan, took part in a conference call with the White House’s COVID-19 task force about programs available to the city and businesses, and led a virtual town hall meeting with the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce and leaders in the real estate industry.

Brocato said he also has appointed a task force to develop a plan to safely reopen city facilities.

This article was updated at 7:11 p.m. with additional comments from Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato.