“DUANESBURG — Lawmakers on Friday agreed to claim more than half of the over $600,000 in funding the town received as part of the American Rescue Plan Act as lost revenue.
In a 3-0 vote during a special Town Board meeting, lawmakers claimed $356,411 of the $608,613 federal windfall received under the 2021 law as lost revenue, and moved the remaining balance to the town’s general fund to be spent at a later date. Board members Dianne Grant and Francis Potter were not in attendance for the Friday morning vote.
Supervisor William Wenzel said moving the ARPA monies to the town’s general fund is intended to “safeguard” the money in the event the federal government decided to take the funding back before the town can spend the funds on upgrades to the Town Hall and bolstering broadband access.
“This will get these funds secured so that the town will have these monies available at such time … we’re able to make such disbursements,” he said.
The transfer was approved just hours before the U.S. Senate approved a debt limit deal that would see the federal government claw back more than $27 billion in unspent coronavirus-relief funds distributed to federal agencies like Agriculture Department, Education Department, Labor Department and Small Business Administration, among others, according to NPR.
The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan was passed shortly after President Joseph Biden took office as a way to aid in recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed more than 1 million Americans and disrupted the country’s economy.
The law delivered billions in aid to local governments under law to recoup lost revenue and pay for infrastructure upgrades and other projects associated with the pandemic.
Local governments have until 2024 to allocate the funds and to 2026 to spend the funds. Unspent monies must be returned to the federal government, according to the law.”
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Arnold, Chad. Schenectady Daily Gazette “This item is set to be published on Jan 1, 1900.” 7 June 2023.