What is the American Rescue Plan?

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 is a $1.9 trillion emergency relief legislative package enacted in March with the purpose of providing relief to struggling communities affected by the pandemic.?

It includes $350 billion in Coronavirus Relief Funds to help state and local governments mitigate the financial impact of the public health emergency by:

• keeping first responders and frontline healthcare workers on the job
• maintaining critical government services
• charting a course for economic recovery in the face of evaporating revenues

Here’s What Jurisdictions Should Know

How Much of the Stimulus Funding Is Available to Local Governments?

Of the $350 billion earmarked for states and localities, $130.2 billion is set aside for local governments, to be divided equally between counties and cities. The legislation also sets aside $20 billion for federally recognized Tribal governments.

Why the Extra Funding?

Although Congress extended the deadline for accessing the $139 billion in CARES Act funding last December, it’s clear that local governments will continue to see economic damage in the coming years.??In a 2020 survey, the National League of Cities projected that cities, towns and villages could expect to face a $360 billion budget shortfall from 2020 through 2022.?

The American Rescue Plan will help government officials offset those losses, improve the quality of their government services and technology infrastructure, and place essential infrastructure projects either delayed or canceled because of the pandemic back on the docket.?

How Much Time Is There to Use ARPA Funding?

State and local governments must commit or obligate the funds they receive by December 31, 2024.

What Can the Funds Be Used For?

There are four categories of use cases in place for American Rescue Plan funding:

• To respond to or mitigate negative economic impacts related to the COVID-19 public health emergency.
• To cover costs incurred as a result of the emergency.
• To replace revenue lost, delayed, or decreased as a result of the emergency.
• To address the negative economic impacts of the emergency.

For more details on how your jurisdiction can utilize American Rescue Plan funds, see the?U.S. Treasury Department’s fact sheet.

Why You Can Procure ePlan from Avolve With ARPA Funds

You can optimize and accelerate your plan review workflow and services to issue permits faster, driving economic development in your city, while keeping your staff and citizens safe with an online, work-from-anywhere digital platform.

A pandemic survey by the International Code Council (ICC) found that among respondents from jurisdictions in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia that:

Another recent survey from The Atlas indicates a trend in future technology spending among cities and counties shows that top priorities for future spending on technology include:

• work from home & flexible schedules (58%)
• community engagement (56%)
• public services workflow (51%)
• online revenue & payment capture (40%)
• strategic planning (37%)

How Avolve Can Further Support Your Jurisdiction in Maximizing Your ARPA Funds

Another key approved use of ARPA funds is?to make investments in water, sewer or broadband infrastructure.??If your jurisdiction is planning to push infrastructure projects with ARPA funding, Avolve’s best-in-class workflows for CIP, Public Works, and Small Cell Broadband plan reviews can accelerate your delivery of these critical projects.

Ask us how ARPA funding and the digital benefits from Avolve can help future-proof your community!

1. Faster plan reviews = faster permits, quicker revenues
2. Keep your staff and citizens safe with online service
3. ePlan life cycle – long term benefits, enterprise potential

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