More than $700M in American Rescue Plan funds going to local governments: See how much your community is getting

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

The American Rescue Plan, passed by Congress last year, makes $718.7 million available to more than 200 local governments in our nine-county region. Local elected officials are deciding now how that money will be used.

The Dayton Daily News used Ohio public records law and federal sources to create the searchable database below of how much each government in our area was awarded in ARPA funds.

This is part of our project Dayton Daily News Investigates Billions in COVID aid: Where it’s going. Go here for more on the project, including a searchable database of how local governments spent hundreds of millions of dollars in CARES Act money.

U.S. Treasury in January issued final guidance on how American Rescue Plan Act — or ARPA — money can be used, giving governments “substantial flexibility” in how they spend it.

Rules allow governments to replace public sector revenue lost due to the pandemic, respond to health and economic impacts of the pandemic, and invest in water, sewer and broadband, among other things.

Examples of ineligible expenses in treasury guidelines include building new jails, offsetting tax cuts, paying down debt, replenishing financial reserves or paying legal settlements.

How do you think the funds below should be used? What questions or concerns do you have about how local governments are spending federal COVID relief money? Go here to take our anonymous survey.

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