Federal aid going out to Vt. towns and villages
A view from North Bridgewater Road in Bridgewater, Vt. (Gareth Henderson Photo)
Vermont’s cities, towns and villages are receiving a new round of federal pandemic relief funds over the next several days, and some payments have already come through.
The money comes from the local fiscal recovery funds tied to the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). From this funding, the state on Thursday disbursed another payment of $60.6 million to 276 eligible local governments, according to state officials.
“These funds will play an important role for municipalities as we work to build stronger, more resilient communities,” Gov. Phil Scott said in a Thursday announcement. “In addition to the historic investments with state ARPA funds that I’ve proposed for climate change mitigation, housing, broadband, water and sewer infrastructure, and more, this municipal money can help strengthen support in these and other critical areas.”
This is the first of two rounds of funding for municipalities. In Woodstock, the town has received a check for $107,933, and the village is expecting a $44,911 payment, according to Municipal Manager William Kerbin. He said the town and village will receive the same amounts next year. The Village Trustees and Select Board held a recent joint meeting to discuss the funds, but that discussion was preliminary, Kerbin said, and no firm decisions have been reached on how to use the money. He expected another joint meeting in the next couple of months.
Right now, municipalities are anticipating more guidance from the U.S. Treasury.
“What we’re really waiting for is the final rule from the Treasury department to determine what we can use the funding for, the specific purposes and activities,” Kerbin said Thursday.
On Aug. 5, Vermont received 50% of the $121 million of funds that the U.S. Treasury originally designated for distribution to the state’s 14 counties. The Treasury is required to distribute these funds to the states for distribution to local governments in two equal payments; the $60.6 million distributed Thursday represents the first round of payments. The county funds are distributed to eligible local governments based on the proportion of the municipality’s population to the county population, state officials explained. In separate funding, a total of $29 million was distributed to Vermont municipal governments in July.
The Vermont League of Cities and Towns and Vermont’s 11 regional planning commissions continue to assist cities, towns and villages with navigating federal rules related to this funding through webinars and multiple resources, including an ARPA resource webpage. For more information, visit https://finance.vermont.gov/covid-19-guidance.
— Gareth Henderson
