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The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was signed into law by President Biden in March 2021. Through the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF), it guarantees direct relief to cities, towns and villages in the United States. The U.S. Department of the Treasury is responsible for overseeing this program.
The purpose of this one-time funding is to assist in recovering from the public health emergency and its negative economic impacts of the pandemic. Therefore the City’s overarching focus is primarily on public health, public safety, and long-term infrastructure benefits (i.e. stormwater, affordable housing, pedestrian walkability).
For brevity, the City will refer to this as ARPA.
As with all grant funding, there are restrictions on how the money can be spent. The five basic categories are:
Restrictions on the funding are complex. The U.S. Department of the Treasury details the restrictions through several documents and an FAQ, all of which are linked on this page.
At the August 9 City Council meeting (video and materials), staff proposed using $1,061,500, or 5.9 percent of the total, for immediate needs in general government, public schools, and stormwater. Council approved a Second Reading with some items (new employee positions and speed limit signage) on hold at the September 13 meeting (video and materials). The ordinance includes (see full document here):
The City welcomes input on the use of the remaining federal funds. Watch for meetings, surveys, and more in the autumn of 2021. To receive notifications about public input opportunities, subscribe here.
To submit a comment about the funds now, please email publicinfo@fallschurchva.gov.
Meeting Information | Details |
---|---|
City Council Virtual Work Session August 2, 2021 |
Discussion of TO21-13, an ordinance to approve spending $1,061,500 of ARPA funding on immediate projects. Video and Materials |
City Council Virtual Meeting August 9, 2021 |
First Reading of TO21-13, an ordinance to approve spending $1,061,500 of ARPA funding on immediate projects. Video, Agenda Materials and Legislative Update (record of Council action) |
City Council Virtual Meeting September 13, 2021 |
Second Reading of TO21-13, an ordinance to approve spending $1,061,500 of ARPA funding on immediate projects. |
City Council Virtual Work Session October 18, 2021 |
Presentation by the City's Chief Financial Officer and request for Council's input on ARPA strategies and priorities and the proposed public engagement process. |
Town Hall Meeting #1
Wednesday, October 27 |
Watch the Video via YouTube and view the PowerPoint Presentation (PDF) |
Town Hall Meeting #2 Thursday, November 4 at Noon |
Join via MS Teams, or call in to 540-566-5466 (ID 332 104 25). Video will be posted to this webpage after the event. |
Email
703-248-5003 (TTY 711)
City Hall
300 Park Ave.
Suite 203, East Wing
Falls Church, VA 22046