City Capacity and Performance
Proposal Details of the Mayor's Recommended ARP Spending, Round 1
Civil Servant Furlough Relief Fund
An imbalance exists in the way employees were treated financially in 2020 due to the budget cuts imposed in 2020.
Some, but not all, employees were forced to take furlough days in 2020 creating an inequity between groups of employees. The proposed program will provide a mechanism through PTO to reduce the inequity between employee groups. The outcome is increased employee morale and improved relationships with labor unions that agreed to furloughs in 2020.
Digital Equity - Connectivity
Minneapolis has more than 31,000 households that do not have access to internet services. Many of these households are economically disadvantaged and/or in areas of the City that are underserved by broadband providers. As 2020 has highlighted, internet services are critical for access to schooling, employment, health care and social services.
In partnership with Hennepin County, Minneapolis Public Schools, and local non-profits, the City will create equitable internet connectivity solutions to support marginalized populations in bridging the digital divide.
Implementation at the City - Temporary Staff in Finance, CPED, Health, Communications, Race and Equity, HR and IT
Staffing resources are needed to implement the American Rescue Plan Act program allocations.
The American Rescue Plan Act has awarded funds to address the impacts of COVID-19, including assistance to households, small businesses, and nonprofits, or aid to impacted industries, such as tourism, travel, and hospitality. Departments including CPED, Finance and Property Services, Health, Human Resources and IT will be implementing many of these programs and initiatives and will need additional staff to roll out and manage these allocations. This funding will support additional staff in 2021.
This proposal also includes support for the Department of Race & Equity to plan for a participatory budgeting process later in the year with a planned investment of $1 million in ARP funding.
Meet Minneapolis Large Event Incentives
The hospitality industry was impacted greatly by COVID-19 and the restrictions which kept the industry closed. Many of the 30,000 hospitality workers in Minneapolis have been unemployed for over a year. Hospitality taxes have not been generated and corresponding business revenue has reduced by as much as 90%.
These funds will be used by Meet Minneapolis to incentivize large conventions and events to chose to host their events in Minneapolis. These events bring people to Minneapolis and they spend their money at our hotels, restaurants, theaters, museums, shopping locations, and other businesses. Competition for these events is fierce coming out of the pandemic as our competitors want to stimulate their economy as well.
Meet Minneapolis Visitor Marketing Campaign
Visitors to Minneapolis either through tourism and leisure or events have decreased over the last year. This funding represents the start of a comprehensive Destination Awareness Building Program, Reputation Management initiatives, Small and BIPOC Business Support marketing, and Visitor Experience Enhancements.
The funds will allow for the creation of a comprehensive marketing plan that seeks to bring more visitors to Minneapolis by promoting the city and its tourism and leisure infrastructure. A significant component of this plan will be to tell Minneapolis’ rich and diverse story and to promote the social and economic well being of our city through the economic benefits achieved through visitor spending.
Mental Health for City Staff
In 2020 employees experienced trauma and emotional issues at alarming rates. There is currently a lack of access to mental health resources for employees and the out-of-pocket costs are often prohibitive for many employees.
This program will expand the police and fire mental health pilot program to include all covered employees and their dependents. he program will provide ten outpatient mental health visits and ten outpatient intensive treatment program visits with either an in-network or an out-of-network provider at no cost to the insured member. The expected outcome is reduced mental health issues among employees and their dependents, improved mental health and wellbeing, increased productivity, and improved employee morale.