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American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Special Revenue Grant Project Ordinance and Budget Amendment
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INFORMATION CONTACT:
Clayton Voignier, County Manager’s Office, Assistant County Manager, 704-283-3687; Beverly Liles, Finance, Director, 704-283-3675
ACTION REQUESTED:
1) Adopt Special Revenue Grant Project Ordinance #77E for Union County American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 Amendment #5 and 2) adopt Budget Amendment #14
PRIOR BOARD ACTIONS:
1) June 21, 2021, Regular Meeting, Agenda Item # 42 - Board received an update on American Rescue Act funding, approved SRO 61, ratified the acceptance of ARPA funding in the amount of $23,294,900, and delegated the responsibility to execute any necessary agreements on behalf of the Board of Commissioners to the County Manager.
2) June 6, 2022, Regular Meeting, Agenda Item # 22-345 - Board adopted the Grant Project Ordinance for ARPA Amendment #1 and associated Capital Project Ordinances.
3) September 19, 2022, Regular Meeting, Agenda Item # 22-657 - Board adopted the Grant Project Ordinance for ARPA Amendment #2 and amendments to the associated Capital Project Ordinances
4) June 5, 2023, Regular Meeting, Agenda Item # 23-307 - Board adopted the Grant Project Ordinance for ARPA Amendment #3, Budget amendment and amendments to the associated Capital Project Ordinances
5) March 18, 2024, Regular Meeting, Agenda Item # 24-150 - Board adopted the Grant Project Ordinance for ARPA Amendment #4 and Budget amendment
BACKGROUND:
The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was enacted on March 11, 2021, and provided a total grant allocation of $46.5 million in Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (CSLFRF) to Union County through the U.S. Treasury. The funding is dispersed in two tranches, and Union County has received both tranches. In January 2022, with input from the County’s Recovery Act Committee, the Board of Commissioners broadly allocated these funds by priority grouping. Based on this direction, the Management Team created an internal Oversight Committee to govern the expenditure of these funds and establish project criteria for County agencies and departments to submit their funding requests for consideration. The grant project ordinance amendment establishes all the appropriations for the projects that have been previously approved by the Board of Commissioners as of September 19, 2022, and changes that were noted in the presentation to the Board at May 15, 2023, and February 9, 2024, meetings.
The grant project ordinance expires on December 31, 2026, or when all ARPA/CSLFRF funds have been obligated and expended by the County, whichever occurs sooner. The changes incorporated in this amendment reflect a reconciliation completed by staff of projected expenditures on various projects to ensure that all funds are obligated appropriately by the December 31, 2024, which is the U.S. Treasury’s deadline for obligating these funds.
• Decrease the allocation for Restoring Public Sector Capacity ($13,539,197)
• Decrease the allocation for Completing Access to Broadband (CAB) ($488,689)
• Decrease the allocation for Covid-19 Mitigation for Public Health ($147,938)
• Increase the allocation for Program Administration ($1,950,000)
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
$46,589,799 from federal grant resources