Yolo County supervisors approve ARP expenditure plan

This is an update on the American Rescue Plan published by Supervisor Don Saylor in his weekly newsletter.

On Tuesday, the Board approved the initial American Rescue Plan (ARP) expenditure plan, which included funding for priority projects, priority categories, strategic plan implementation, and other uses.  The Board also provided direction on the development of ARP priority category workgroups and approved a Yolo County ARP Policy to guide the use of ARP funds .  A recording of the discussion can be found here and a summary of our actions is offered below.

As a reminder, Yolo County expects to receive approximately  $42.8 million in ARP funds -- half of that was received in May 2021; the other half is expected in May 2022.  These ARP funds must be expended or obligated by December 31, 2024.

Four priority projects were approved on Tuesday and I am delighted to have been involved in advocating  for, supporting, and driving these projects to get to this point.  The alignment of these projects with our ARP Guiding Principles and Strategic Plan have allowed for unified support from the Board and our community.  Projects like these will have intersectional positive impacts on the lives of Yolo County residents, especially those in challenged, marginalized, and underrepresented groups, and will continue to be my focus as we move forward with ARP funding decisions.

FUNDING AMOUNTS

• Priority Projects ($9,250,000):
  • Capay Valley Health & Community Center -- $2,250,000. This project addresses health equity issues in the underserved rural areas of Esparto, Madison, and Capay Valley by providing health, dental, behavioral health, and pharmacy services to residents.
  • Crisis Now -- $3,000,000.  This countywide crisis response model focuses on crisis prevention, early intervention, post-crisis services, and ongoing supports and will implement three primary components--a 24/7 Crisis and Access Line, a Mobile Crisis Team, and a Crisis Receiving Center.
  • Yolo Regional Food Hub -- $2,000,000.  The Yolo Regional Food Hub will allow for aggregating, processing, storing, and distributing farm produce grown in Yolo County.  This project will provide pandemic relief for local farmers, improve regional food security, increase employment and job training opportunities, stabilize food markets, and create the opportunity to bring Yolo-grown produce into local institutions, such as schools, hospitals, and the jail.
  • Welcome Baby -- $2,000,000.  For babies born to new and at-risk mothers in Yolo County, this program will provide three home visits at critical points in order to coordinate access to services and support medical, mental health, and other care that has lapsed during the pandemic.

• Priority Categories ($19,500,000):
  • Housing/Homeless -- $7,500,000
  • Food Security -- $3,000,000
  • Child, Youth, and Family -- $5,500,000
  • Mental Health -- $500,000
  • Community Parks & Facilities -- $3,000,000

• Strategic Plan Implementation ($3,600,000)
  • Climate Action Implementation -- $1,000,000
  • Economic Development Plan/Activities -- $500,000
  • Aging Needs -- $600,000
  • Broadband Strategic Plan Implementation -- $500,000
  • Water/Wastewater Infrastructure -- $1,000,000

• Other Funding Uses ($10,450,000)
  • Revenue Reimbursement -- $2,750,000
  • COVID Response -- $1,500,000
  • ARP Staffing -- $2,000,000
  • Reserve -- $4,200,000

• Allowable Expenditures – The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) or designee shall review each project or proposed expenditure to determine if it is an allowable use of ARP funds. Should the proposed use of funding not be eligible, the CFO shall advise on the specific concerns or risks promptly and provide any mitigation strategies to maintain allowability.

• Board Principles – Incorporate Board ARP Principles.

• Competitive Bidding – The ARP regulation does not incorporate emergency provisions on competitive solicitation; accordingly, the policy recognizes that regular federal procurement standards must be followed which are already incorporated in the County’s Procurement Policy. In general, these standards require that, unless a sub-award of funds goes to a governmental agency, a competitive process needs to occur to ensure compliance. Depending on the project, this would typically be either a competitive grant process (non-profit funding) or competitive procurement (all other purchases), with limited exceptions.

• Accounting and Budget Control – The Board provides authorization to the CFO or designee to administratively establish necessary accounting or budget structures in order to maintain budget compliance and reporting compliance with US Treasury requirements.

• Reporting – ARP reporting to US Treasury will be performed by the Department of Financial Services. The County Administrator or designee shall report to the Board on actual expenditures, proposed changes in the ARP Plan, and other matters as needed on a regular basis, which shall be no less frequent than twice per year.