ARP Act Funding

American Rescue Plan Act’s Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund Program

Records Building - 500 Elm Street, Dallas, TX 75202

Dallas County is a direct recipient of the American Rescue Plan Act Coronavirus State & Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF). Dallas County is utilizing the funds in a variety of ways to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and address its public health and negative economic impacts on families, small businesses and nonprofits, government operations, and county communities.

What is ARP?

On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 into law. The $1.9 trillion package, based on President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, is intended to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, including the public health and economic impacts. ARP allocates hundreds of billions of dollars for public health and vaccines, assistance for vulnerable populations, education and housing stabilization, economic recovery assistance and direct assistance for families and individuals. As part of the $362 billion in federal fiscal recovery aid for state and local governments, $65.1 billion is provided as direct aid to counties. The ARPA State & Local Fiscal Recovery Funds are intended to provide support to State, local, and Tribal governments in responding to the impact of COVID-19 and in their efforts to contain COVID-19 on their communities, residents, and businesses. ARPA funds build on and expand the support provided in the first years of the Coronavirus pandemic, including through the CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Fund.

How can Dallas County use the Federal Recovery funding?

The SLFRF program, administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, allows the relief funding to be used in the following ways:

• Replace lost public sector revenue, using this funding to provide government services up to the amount of revenue lost due to the pandemic
• Respond to the far-reaching public health and negative economic impacts of the pandemic, by supporting the health of communities, and helping households, small businesses, impacted industries, nonprofits, and the public sector recover from economic impacts
• Provide premium pay for essential workers, offering additional support to those who have and will bear the greatest health risks because of their service in critical sectors
• Invest in water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure, making necessary investments to improve access to clean drinking water, to support vital wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, and to expand affordable access to broadband internet
• Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds | U.S. Department of the Treasury

As an ARPA SLFRF recipient, Dallas County can utilize its Federal aid for COVID-19 response efforts, economic stabilization supports for communities harmed by the pandemic, and to sustain and strengthen their essential public services that were negatively impacted during the COVID-19 public health emergency.

How is Dallas County deploying its funding?

Dallas County is engaged in a number of public health, negative economic impacts, and public sector capacity projects through department cross-collaboration and relationship building with external partners. The county hopes to address the immediate effects of COVID-19 while building equity and resiliency through these important and innovative initiatives.

The county established the following principles to aid in its intended uses of funding:

• Data Driven. Establish evidence and evaluation-based projects/programs that contain the necessary data to demonstrate how they will address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic or assist in recovery.
• Equitable Outcomes. Establish projects/programs with goals to increase equity and resilience for disadvantaged and unincorporated communities.
• Avoid Duplication. Ensure established projects/programs do not duplicate services already provided by the state or federal government, including municipal coordination to avoid duplication of efforts of cities within Dallas County.
• Directed towards Health and Safety Measures. Establish countywide projects/programs that bolster the health and safety response to COVID-19.

Through programs and projects implementation, Dallas County promotes a strong and equitable recovery from the COVID-19 public health emergency and its resulting economic crisis. ARPA-funded assistance programs that have provided direct assistance to community members include the Dallas County Emergency Business Assistance Program (EBAP II), The Emergency Microbusiness Assistance Program, the Emergency Nonprofit Assistance Program (ENAP), and the Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program (EMAP). Dallas County’s Health & Human Services Division also continues to utilize funding to serve the vital health and well-being needs of residents. Efforts include vaccination outreach, weatherization and energy assistance, and additional services for vulnerable populations.

To find out more about how Dallas County is implementing American Rescue Plan funds, please see our latest SLFRF Projects Report - here.

Dallas County is seeking input from the community on the use of American Rescue Plan Act funding.