ARPA OVERVIEW.
On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 (H.R. 1319) into law. This $1.9 trillion package is intended to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, including the public health and economic impacts. ARPA provides $350 billion in emergency funding to states and local governments through the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (CSLFRF) and also allocates hundreds of billions of dollars nationwide through various programs for public health and vaccines, assistance for vulnerable populations, education and housing stabilization, economic recovery assistance and direct assistance for families and individuals.
ARPA ALLOCATION.
The U.S. Department of Treasury set up the CSLFRF to provide federal fiscal recovery aid for state and local governments. Amounts paid to states, the District of Columbia, U.S. Territories, and eligible units of local government are based on population as provided in the ARP Act. Of the $350 billion provided through CSLFRF, $65.1 billion will be distributed to counties based on the county share of the U.S. population. Based on Los Alamos County's population and its share of the U.S. population, the County was allocated $3,762,201, of which the Los Alamos County Council set aside $2 million for grant distribution to qualifying small businesses in the County.
ARPA GRANT APPLICATION.
While the County had initially hoped to start accepting grant applications in May 2022 to help our businesses to recover, we paused. Federally funded programs, where the rules are broad and there are multiple reimbursement categories, require strong internal controls to assure compliance with regulations. ARPA rules have been challenging for all jurisdictions, and it is in everyone’s best interest to be sure we can comply with the multitude of compliance requirements. To streamline this process and ease the administrative burden for us as the recipient and our business applicants as the beneficiary, we contracted with CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen LLP) to deploy an ARPA portal. CLA's application and management software platform, which powers the ARPA portal, has successfully been rolled out and touted in other communities nationwide.
Utilizing none of the proceeds from the $2 million ARPA funds allocated to the businesses, the County-funded portal will facilitate the application process. It will streamline the tracking, eligibility review, and workflow approvals, give us better tools to monitor compliance, and help automate recipient and beneficiary monitoring and reporting requirements to maximize funding to the qualifying businesses. The County is working diligently to configure and test the portal and is hopeful of launching by the end of August. More details will be forthcoming on specific directions, programs, and what will be needed from applicants to determine eligibility.
Once the portal is implemented, the County encourages Los Alamos' small businesses to complete one or more applications online. Eligible expenses will be reimbursed retroactively to March 3, 2021. The County plans to accept applications for the next two and half years or until the $2 million are exhausted, whichever comes first.
Email Economic Development Administrator Dan Ungerleider [link] for more information on ARPA and other business assistance programs and resources.