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ARPA Update - January 12, 2022

What is the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)?

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was signed into law by President Biden on March 11, 2021. The legislation established the Coronavirus-19 State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF) which is intended to provide $350 billion to support state and local governments as they address the health and economic impacts of COVID-19 in their communities.

The Town of Avon has been allocated $5.4 million to be received in two tranches: $2.7 million was received in June 2021 and another $2.7 million is anticipated to be received in June 2022. Funds must be obligated by December 31, 2024 and spent by December 31, 2026.

An overview of the program was provided to the Town Council at its December 2, 2021 meeting. The presentation is available HERE for review.

How are ARPA funds permitted to be spent? 

There are four eligible uses for the funds. They are as follows:

  1. To respond to public health emergency & its negative economic impacts.
  2. To provide premium pay for essential workers.
  3. To provide government services to the extent of revenue lost due to COVID-19.
  4. To make necessary investments in water, sewer or broadband infrastructure.

ARPA funds may not be spent for the following purposes:

  1. Match funds for other federal grants.
  2. Pay down unfunded pension liabilities.
  3. Pay down interest or principal on outstanding debt.
  4. Pay legal settlements.
  5. Premium pay for telework.
  6. Contributions to “rainy day” funds.
  7. Anything that violates the American Rescue Plan Act, Uniform Guidance conflicts of interest requirements, and other federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

On January 6, 2022, the United States Department of the Treasury issued the Final Rule for use of the SLFRF program funds. The Final Rule is available HERE in its entirety and an Overview of the Major Provisions of the Final Rule is available HERE.

Where is Avon in the process of allocating its ARPA funding?

At this time, staff continue to develop recommendations for projects including project descriptions; budgets and timelines for completion. A DRAFT list of projects that have been put forward as of January 11, 2022 is available for review HERE. Please note that this list is evolving and subject to change as projects details are still being determined at this time.

Projects being proposed are generally coming from the following sources:

  1. Capital Improvement Plan (CIP);
  2. Master planning documents (i.e. Plan of Conservation & Development, Recreation Master Plan);
  3. Recommendation of a third party professional retained in relation to a project or a particular functional area (i.e. IT, cybersecurity, etc.);
  4. Fulfill a need that became apparent during the height of the pandemic.

This list of projects will ultimately be narrowed down to a list of recommendations to the Town Council. Projects that will be recommended to the Town Council will generally meet the following criteria:

  1. Meet one or more of the eligibility categories;
  2. Can be completed within the required timeframe;
  3. Result in little, to no, additional operating expenditures;
  4. Provide the greatest benefit to the community.

We anticipate that projects will be presented to the Town Council in tranches over the coming months for consideration. Use of ARPA funds will be authorized through the annual budget process or the Town’s existing supplemental appropriations process, which includes approvals by the Town Council and the Board of Finance.

Who should I contact if I have questions about ARPA, or project ideas to share with the Town?

Please contact Grace Tiezzi, Assistant Town Manager, at (860) 409-4300 or gtiezzi@avonct.gov with questions, comments or project ideas.

Please watch this page for updates on the ARPA allocation process. Please also Subscribe to Town News to receive updates on a variety of topics straight to your inbox.