American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was passed by Congress, signed by the President, and enacted on March 11, 2021. The purpose of this act is to provide funding to localities for expenditures incurred due to COVID-19.

At the beginning of the calendar year 2020, a global pandemic occurred known as COVID-19 and continues to be a significant global concern. This pandemic quickly spread and affected every aspect of everyday living. It has affected businesses, governments, localities, and schools.

Stafford County employed guidance from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) to help control the spread of COVID-19. Stafford County changed operations in a variety of ways.

• Temporarily closed County buildings to the public and operated by appointment only
• Some Departments were forced to reduce operational hours
• Closed all park buildings to the public
• Enforced a strict social distancing policy and required masks of individuals entering County buildings
• Performed temperature checks
• Temporarily postponed summer camps and programs
• Encouraged and maximized teleworking among staff
• Canceled or postponed several community programs and events
• Provided training to staff on how to respond to and prevent the spread of the virus

Like other localities, due to everyday living and consumption changes, the County saw a decline in revenues necessary to sustain normal operations. The County also incurred additional new and increased costs associated with cleaning, disinfecting, employee and citizen protection, and preventing the spread of COVID-19. In response to this national emergency, the federal government responded by enacting the ARPA Relief. The ARPA Relief provided funding to local governments for necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to COVID-19 to cover costs that were not accounted for in the budget and cover COVID-19 related costs incurred from July 31, 2021, through December 31, 2026.

On March 11, 2021, the Federal Government approved funding to localities through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). Funding is equally distributed in two tranches. Stafford County has received the Tranche 1 funding in May of 2021 in the amount of $14,847,768. It is anticipated an equal amount of funding will be distributed in May 2022 for a total combined amount of $29,695,536.