Welcome to the Friday Update from the Federal Funding Hub!
This message shares news and resources so that our region can make the most of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and other federal funding.
But first, what’s ARPA got to do with pickleball? Find out this and more below.
News from MSP Cities
Apple Valley: The city has been planning for improvement projects at the Central Maintenance Facility and fire stations. The city could use $2.72 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding and apply for a sales tax refund for the construction of the fire stations, which is estimated at $700,000.
City of Brooklyn Park: On Monday, April 11, the Brooklyn Park City Council amended and approved a funding recommendation option presented by staff as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Community Funding Opportunity. The final approval allocated a total of $1,204,700 in ARPA funding to organizations responding to the public health emergency and negative economic impact of COVID-19. The Council’s action allocated ARPA funding to 36 community-based non-profits and businesses proposing programs to serve the residents of Brooklyn Park. The organizations were awarded funding of $10,000 up to $82,500.
Minneapolis:
Mayor Jacob Frey delivered his first State of the City address of his second term. Frey highlighted the structural changes underway within the City of Minneapolis, from the new Office of Community Safety to accelerated investments in affordable housing, inclusive recovery, and violence prevention. He also outlined his proposal for spending the remaining $43 million dollars of the total $271 million awarded to the City of Minneapolis through the passage of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.
Mayor Frey pitches plan to use ARPA funding for violence prevention, housing, and mental health services. Frey pitched his plan for using the city's remaining $43 million in American Rescue Plan funding as part of a larger effort to help Minneapolis bounce back from a tumultuous two-year period that was marked by the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic and George Floyd's murder.
News from MSP Counties
Ramsey County:
Ramsey County officials seek state money to keep services running for the homeless with the closing of the Bethesda shelter. Ramsey County is seeking aid from the federal government as part of the CARES Act and American Rescue Plan.
On May 9th from 6 - 7 pm a public meeting will be held to receive responses from the community regarding the Ramsey County's portion of the Dakota County Consortium 2022 Annual Action Plan, an amendment to the Dakota County Consortium 2021 Annual Action Plan and the Dakota County Consortium’s HOME Investment Partnerships Program American Rescue Plan (HOME-ARP) Allocation plan. Join here.
Minnesota News
EDA: U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo announced that the Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding a $2.9 million grant to the Farmers Union Foundation, St. Paul, Minnesota, to purchase mobile meat slaughtering and processing equipment. This grant is funded by the American Rescue Plan.
Unemployment insurance:
House and Senate leaders have announced an agreement to replenish the state’s unemployment trust fund and provide bonuses to frontline workers. Both bodies hope to pass the legislation and have it on the governor’s desk by Friday. Much of the funding for the agreement will come from federal American Rescue Plan dollars. About $190 million of the $1.15 billion remaining in that fund will be set aside for Gov. Tim Walz to use for ongoing COVID programs.
Minnesota legislative leaders reach multi-billion-dollar unemployment insurance, worker paycheck deal. The agreement opens up $190 million in federal American Rescue Plan funds to be used by the governor to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic while the remainder of the state’s portion will be up to the Legislature to spend. The proposal uses a mix of federal American Rescue Plan Act funds and general fund dollars to pay for the trio of proposals. And it takes a bite out of the state’s projected budget surplus. Lawmakers are expected to spend the next three weeks debating the best way to spend those funds.
Governor's Council on Economic Expansion: The Council met on April 25th to understand strategies to realize the vision that Minnesota is the healthiest, greenest, safest, most equitable place for communities to thrive. Watch the recording of the meeting here.
National News
Justice40: Complexities with the Biden administration’s attempt to steer more federal dollars to disadvantaged parts of the U.S. are coming to light, with critics saying places with coal-dependent economies, communities with more minority residents and much of Alaska are at risk of being left out.
New Jersey: New Jersey’s Office of Information Technology has turned to data to get a better handle on the state’s post-pandemic economy and determine how best to deploy American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds.
Broadband: Conventional wisdom holds that last year’s bipartisan passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) reflects the tradition of both parties wanting to deliver better roads and bridges. But one section of that legislation defied both the anchors of history and the dominant political dynamics of the moment: the $65 billion allocated to broadband.
Federal Funds: Pickleball is the nation's fastest growing sport and cities and towns are using money from the American Rescue Plan to build facilities for the legions of new players.
Tulsa, Oklahoma: Officials say that following the numbers and looking at the evidence has proven useful in tackling a range of equity issues and steering clear of partisan fights. Tulsa officials discovered “that we had way too many warrants for arrest for people simply because they had not paid municipal fines” or showed up for court dates. Working with Results for America, and using American Recue Plan Act funds, the city of Tulsa started a pilot project to reduce the number of people who were not showing up.
EDA: Earlier this month, Assistant Secretary Castillo kicked off our “Coalition Conversations” tour in the Midwest with visits to two Build Back Better Regional Challenge (BBBRC) finalists to learn more about how regional coalitions are coming together to develop strategies to strengthen their regional economies. The second visit was in St. Paul, Minn., with the coalition led by Minneapolis-Saint Paul Regional Economic Development Partnership. Assistant Secretary Castillo moderated a roundtable discussion with each coalition, which were among 13 randomly selected sites.
Upcoming Webinars
Managing and Maximizing Federal Grant Funding: Join NACo and Tidal Basin on May 3rd at 12 pm to discuss federal funding opportunities for counties, including the American Rescue Plan, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program and Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery allocations from 2020 and 2021. Register here.
Rent Stabilization: Join the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis on May 4th from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm on Understanding the Rental-Market Impacts of Rent Stabilization Policy Choices. This is the second session of a four-part webinar series. Register here.
Strengthening America’s Workforce with Recovery Funds: Join NACo on May 4th at 2:00 pm to learn how counties are using ARPA dollars to tackle the labor shortage, connecting people to good jobs, expanding childcare services, and fostering a strong national workforce that meets the needs of residents through local government service. Register here.
Leveraging ARPA Funds to Prevent Violent Crime: Join NACo for a webinar on May 11th at 1:00 pm that will feature a discussion with county leaders on how they have been using ARPA funds to reduce violence and strengthen communities.
Latino Community Foundation: On May 18th at 6:00 pm, hear from the experts about how we can mobilize Latinos around the American Rescue Plan. Register here.
American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Training: This free training on May 19th from 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm will give an overview of eligibility rules for fiscal recovery funds, limits on the use of ARPA funds, and reporting requirements. Participants will also learn about applying Chapter 30B to ARPA funds, using collaborative and cooperative contracts, and complying with federal single audit requirements. Register here.
Resources
Key Takeaways from Treasury ARPA Project and Expenditure Reports:
By April 30, all counties that received American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Funds must submit a Project and Expenditure Report to the U.S. Treasury Department. Click here for updates on the reporting process, as well as steps on how counties may claim the $10 million revenue loss standard allowance.
The U.S. Treasury Department's new Frequently Asked Questions document for the Final Rule of the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund includes several answers to questions associated with and unique to the Final Rule as well as modified answers to questions previously covered in the Interim Final Rule FAQs document.
Racial Equity and Procurement: Governments across the country are committed to investing in racial equity, but many are struggling to translate that commitment into tangible outcomes for communities of color. A new publication from the Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab (GPL), Using Government Procurement to Advance Racial Equity, highlights innovative procurement strategies that can help governments increase investments in historically marginalized communities and deliver services more equitably, including recent examples from Asheville, N.C.; Buffalo, N.Y.; and Lansing, Mich.
IIJA: The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), signed into law on Nov. 15, 2021, infuses historic amounts of funding into our nation’s transportation infrastructure. Applying for grants can seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. The majority of funds will be allocated towards physical infrastructure, as most of most money is available for the reconstruction of bridges and roadways for materials, labor, and planning costs. But some funds are available for technology and securing those could give you the support you need to modernize your department and projects
Have a great weekend, all!
Allison