American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)

Staff Contact:  Tracy Robinson, Administrative Services Director, (925) 299-3227

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 is a $1.9 trillion federal economic stimulus bill that included the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund which provided $350 billion for states, municipalities, counties, tribes, and territories, including $130 billion for local governments split evenly between municipalities and counties to respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency or its negative economic impacts.

The federal government proscribed very specific uses for which ARPA funds could be used, as follows:

1. To respond to the public health emergency or its negative economic impacts, including assistance to households, small businesses, and nonprofits, or aid to impacted industries such as tourism, travel, and hospitality;
2. For the provision of government services to the extent of the reduction in revenue due to the COVID–19 public health emergency relative to revenues collected in the most recent full fiscal year prior to the emergency; and
3. To respond to workers performing essential work during the COVID-19 public health emergency by providing premium pay to eligible workers;
4. To make necessary investments in water, sewer, or broadband infrastructure.

Lafayette COVID-19 Relief and Economic Recovery Program

It is estimated that the City had almost $4M in Covid-related revenue losses. The City Council focused on Items 1 and 2 above and allocated ARPA funds as follows:

Of the $6,372,376 in ARPA funds received, $3.8M was used to backfill general fund revenues that were reduced due to Covid and $1M was directed to fill shortfalls for FY24-25 Capital Improvement Projects (Road & Drain Maintenance). These funds were allocated to police,  road repair, stormwater pollution, downtown core area maintenance and other general fund expenses to bridge the budget gap.

The remaining funds were spent assisting local businesses and non-profits and making City facilities safe and sanitary, as follows:

1. Support the economic / wellness recovery of households ($315,500)
   1. Worked with Lafayette Community Foundation to identify and contribute to organizations that met human services needs
   2. Gave money to LPIE to support children’s mental health
2. Support the economic recovery of small businesses ($1,420,000)
   1. Engaged consultant to help local businesses get Covid relief funds from the various government programs and agencies
   2. Offered monetary support to the Chamber of Commerce and Veterans Memorial Building
   3. Donated to the Park Theater Trust
   4. Established the Business District Marketing website
   5. Launched the Community Gift Card Program
   6. Relaxed city regulations to permit outdoor dining and advertising
   7. Invested in enhancements for outdoor dining
3. Solve City problems caused by COVID-19 ($745,000)
   1. Invested in technology to allow for hybrid City meetings
   2. Invested in upgraded HVAC for Don Tatzin Community Hall and Lafayette Community Center
   3. Sanitized City office spaces and added COVID protection shields and other safety measures before staff returned to the office.
   4. Hired consultants to assist staff in managing economic development opportunities and Covid-relief efforts.
   5. Conducted surveys to assess community needs.

Background on Development of Lafayette’s Program 

ARPA provided much needed relief to local governments and enabling them to lay the foundation for a strong economic recovery. In addition to helping local governments address the revenue losses they have experienced because of the pandemic, it could also be utilized to cover the costs incurred from responding to the public health emergency and provide support for a recovery.  

The City of Lafayette received $6,372,376.16 in ARPA funds (half was received in July 2021 and half in July 2022).  Funds needed to be obligated by December 2024 and spent by December 2026.

This one-time infusion of funds was welcomed in Lafayette  and in 2021, an ARPA subcommittee was formed to ensure that our local recovery program was carefully and thoughtfully administered to ensure optimum use of these funds in alignment with the City Council’s vision, goals and objectives and in compliance with federal requirements. The ARPA subcommittee consisted of Councilmembers Anduri and Dawson as well as and a temporary Economic Development Manager.  This team

1. Developed and directed the program to expend the funds in alignment with the City Council’s vision, goals and objectives and in compliance with American Rescue Plan Act requirements (completed)
2. Met with representatives of private and public agencies on matters related to the development of the program (completed)
3. Carried out a community and business survey (completed)
4. Identified other funding opportunities in the ARPA that can be used for economic recovery  (completed)
5. Developed and made recommendations on how funds will be dispersed (completed)
6. Administered the program, including outreach, referrals, tracking and reporting, and marketing activities for local businesses (on-going)
7. Provided regular updates to the City Council and City Manager (on-going)

Shop Local Lafayette eCard Program

In March 2022, the City launched the Shop Local Lafayette eCard program to support local brick-and-mortar businesses that have experienced economic uncertainty as a result of the pandemic. Buy your eCard now! Read more.