On March 11, 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act was signed into law, and established the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (“SLFRF”) program. The U.S. Treasury released the Final Rule for the program, which took effect on April 1, 2022. This summary is intended to provide support to governments in responding to the economic and public health impacts of COVID-19 and in their efforts to contain impacts on their communities and residents.
Townships & Fire Districts Dashboard
Click to see a breakdown of how ARPA funds have been used throughout Will County.
Applications closed on July 1, 2022
For additional information about grant applications, future grant opportunities, or general inquiries, please contact arpainfo@willcounty.gov
Guidance for
Townships
The County is providing direct aid to levels of government that did not receive direct allocations from the federal or state government. The Township formula allocation is to support an eligible program, service, or capital expenditure within the existing scope of the local unit of government.
Township allocation requests will be evaluated, and additional information will be shared to ensure expenditures are eligible and all compliance, reporting, and monitoring requirements are met.
Subrecipient Relationship
Will County is the recipient of SLFRF. Townships will receive an allocation as a subrecipient, carrying out eligible uses on behalf of Will County, including leveraging SLFRF funds with other sources. Will County is required to manage and monitor subrecipients to ensure compliance with requirements of SLFRF.
Reporting, Compliance & Recoupment
Will County, as a County with more than 250,000 residents, is required to submit quarterly Project and Expenditure Reports. Subrecipients are expected to provide requested data to meet the reporting timeline outlined in Table 3.
Minimum Award Terms and Conditions
These obligations include:
1 | gov Requirements
All eligible recipients are also required to have an active registration with the System for Award Management (“SAM”) (https://www.sam.gov)
2 | Recordkeeping Requirements
Generally, your organization must maintain records and financial documents for five years after all funds have been expended
3 | Single Audit Requirements
Subrecipients that expend more than $750,000 in Federal awards during their fiscal year will be subject to a Single Audit
4 | Civil Rights Compliance
Recipients of Federal financial assistance from the Treasury are required to meet legal requirements relating to nondiscrimination and nondiscriminatory use of Federal funds.
Eligible Costs Timeframe
As a subrecipient of an SLFRF award, subrecipients may use SLFRF funds to cover eligible costs that your organization incurred during the period that begins on March 3, 2021 and ends on December 31, 2024, as long as the award funds for the obligations incurred by December 31, 2024 are expended by December 31, 2026.
Costs for projects incurred by the recipient prior to March 3, 2021 are not eligible.
Eligible Uses
The pandemic has broadly impacted Americans and recipients can provide services to prevent and mitigate COVID-19 to the public. Eligible uses include:
A. Medical and PPE/protective supplies
B. Transportation to reach vaccination or testing sites, or other prevention and mitigation services for vulnerable populations
C. Support for prevention, mitigation, or other services in public facilities
2 | Assistance to Households
Treasury presumes the following households and communities are impacted by the pandemic and may be eligible for the following programs:
Impacted: Low- or-moderate income households or communities; Households that experienced unemployment; Households that experienced increased food or housing insecurity; Households that qualify for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, Childcare Subsidies through the Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) Program, or Medicaid
A. Food assistance (e.g., child nutrition programs, including school meals)
B. Emergency housing assistance: rental assistance, mortgage assistance, utility assistance, assistance paying delinquent property taxes, counseling and legal aid to prevent eviction and homelessness & emergency programs or services for homeless individuals, including temporary residences for people experiencing homelessness
C. Assistance to individuals who want and are available for work, including job training, public jobs programs and fairs, support for childcare and transportation to and from a jobsite or interview, incentives for newly employed workers, subsidized employment, grants to hire underserved workers, assistance to unemployed individuals to start small businesses & development of job and workforce training centers
D. Burials, home repair & home weatherization
E. Programs, devices & equipment for internet access and digital literacy, including subsidies for costs of access
F. Cash assistance
G. Assistance in accessing and applying for public benefits or services
Treasury presumes the following households and communities are disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and may be eligible for the following programs:
Disproportionately Impacted: Low -income households and communities; Households residing in Qualified Census Tracts; Households that qualify for certain federal benefits
H. Pay for community health workers to help households access health & social services
I. Remediation of lead paint or other lead hazards
J. Investments in neighborhoods to promote improved health outcomes
K. Improvements to vacant and abandoned properties, including rehabilitation or maintenance, renovation, removal and remediation of environmental contaminants, demolition or deconstruction, greening/vacant lot cleanup & conversion to affordable housing
3 | Public Sector Capacity
Recipients may use SLFRF funding to restore and bolster public sector capacity, which supports government’s ability to deliver critical COVID-19 services. Under the increased flexibility of the final rule, SLFRF funding may be used to support a broader set of uses to restore and support public sector employment.
-
- Restoring Pre-Pandemic Employment
A. Hire back employees for pre-pandemic position
B. Hire above the pre-pandemic baseline - Supporting and Retaining Public Sector Workers
A. Providing additional funding for employees who experienced pay reductions or were furloughed since the onset of the pandemic, up to the difference in the employee’s pay, considering unemployment benefits received.
B. Maintaining current compensation levels to prevent layoffs. SLFRF funds may be used to maintain current compensation levels, with adjustments for inflation, to prevent layoffs that would otherwise be necessary.
C. Providing worker retention incentives, including reasonable increases in compensation to persuade employees to remain with the employer as compared to other employment options.
- Restoring Pre-Pandemic Employment
Restricted Uses
While recipients have considerable flexibility to use Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to address the diverse needs of their communities, some restrictions on use of funds apply.
- Recipients may not deposit SLFRF funds into a pension fund;
- Recipients may not use SLFRF funds to offset a reduction in net tax revenue caused by the recipient’s change in law, regulation, or administrative interpretation;
- Recipients may not use SLFRF funds as non-Federal match where prohibited:
- Recipients generally may not use SLFRF funds directly to service debt, satisfy a judgment or settlement, or contribute to a “rainy day” fund
- SLFRF funds may not be used for a project that conflicts with or contravenes the purpose of the American Rescue Plan Act statute
Guidance for
Fire Districts
The County is providing direct aid to levels of government and taxing districts that did not receive direct allocations from the federal or state government. The Fire District formula allocation is to support an eligible program, service, or capital expenditure within the existing scope of the district.
Fire District allocation requests will be evaluated, and additional information will be shared to ensure expenditures are eligible and all compliance, reporting, and monitoring requirements are met.
Subrecipient Relationship
Will County is the recipient of SLFRF. Fire Districts will receive an allocation as a subrecipient, carrying out eligible uses on behalf of Will County, including leveraging SLFRF funds with other sources. Will County is required to manage and monitor subrecipients to ensure compliance with requirements of SLFRF.
Reporting, Compliance & Recoupment
Minimum Award Terms and Conditions
1 | Gov Requirements
All eligible recipients are also required to have an active registration with the System for Award Management (“SAM”) (https://www.sam.gov)
2 | Recordkeeping Requirements
Generally, your organization must maintain records and financial documents for five years after all funds have been expended
3 | Single Audit Requirements
Subrecipients that expend more than $750,000 in Federal awards during their fiscal year will be subject to a Single Audit
4 | Civil Rights Compliance
Recipients of Federal financial assistance from the Treasury are required to meet legal requirements relating to nondiscrimination and nondiscriminatory use of Federal funds.
Eligible Costs Timeframe
As a subrecipient of an SLFRF award, subrecipients may use SLFRF funds to cover eligible costs that your organization incurred during the period that begins on March 3, 2021 and ends on December 31, 2024, as long as the award funds for the obligations incurred by December 31, 2024 are expended by December 31, 2026.
Costs for projects incurred by the recipient prior to March 3, 2021 are not eligible.
Eligible Uses
1 | COVID-19 Mitigation and Prevention
The pandemic has broadly impacted Americans and recipients can provide services to prevent and mitigate COVID-19 to the public. Eligible uses include:
A. Medical and PPE/protective supplies
B. Transportation to reach vaccination or testing sites, or other prevention and mitigation services for vulnerable populations
C. Temporary medical facilities and other measures to increase COVID-19 treatment capacity
D. Emergency operations centers & emergency response equipment (e.g., emergency response radio systems)
E. Public telemedicine capabilities for COVID-19 related treatment
F. Support for prevention, mitigation, or other services in public facilities
2 | Public Safety, Public Health, and Human Services Staff
SLFRF funding may be used for payroll and covered benefits for the portion of eligible staff time spent on COVID-19 response through the period of performance. Dispatchers, firefighters, emergency medical responders, and supervisor personnel that directly support public safety staff are eligible staff.
Restricted Uses
While recipients have considerable flexibility to use Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to address the diverse needs of their communities, some restrictions on use of funds apply.
- Recipients may not deposit SLFRF funds into a pension fund;
- Recipients may not use SLFRF funds to offset a reduction in net tax revenue caused by the recipient’s change in law, regulation, or administrative interpretation;
- Recipients may not use SLFRF funds as non-Federal match where prohibited:
- Recipients generally may not use SLFRF funds directly to service debt, satisfy a judgment or settlement, or contribute to a “rainy day” fund
- SLFRF funds may not be used for a project that conflicts with or contravenes the purpose of the American Rescue Plan Act statute
Guidance for
Townships
Guidance for
Fire Districts
The County is providing direct aid to levels of government that did not receive direct allocations from the federal or state government. The Township formula allocation is to support an eligible program, service, or capital expenditure within the existing scope of the local unit of government.
Township allocation requests will be evaluated, and additional information will be shared to ensure expenditures are eligible and all compliance, reporting, and monitoring requirements are met.
The County is providing direct aid to levels of government and taxing districts that did not receive direct allocations from the federal or state government. The Fire District formula allocation is to support an eligible program, service, or capital expenditure within the existing scope of the district.
Fire District allocation requests will be evaluated, and additional information will be shared to ensure expenditures are eligible and all compliance, reporting, and monitoring requirements are met.
Subrecipient Relationship
Will County is the recipient of SLFRF. Townships will receive an allocation as a subrecipient, carrying out eligible uses on behalf of Will County, including leveraging SLFRF funds with other sources. Will County is required to manage and monitor subrecipients to ensure compliance with requirements of SLFRF.
Will County is the recipient of SLFRF. Fire Districts will receive an allocation as a subrecipient, carrying out eligible uses on behalf of Will County, including leveraging SLFRF funds with other sources. Will County is required to manage and monitor subrecipients to ensure compliance with requirements of SLFRF.
Reporting, Compliance & Recoupment
Will County, as a County with more than 250,000 residents, is required to submit quarterly Project and Expenditure Reports. Subrecipients are expected to provide requested data to meet the reporting timeline outlined in Table 3.
Minimum Award Terms and Conditions
These obligations include:
1 | gov Requirements
All eligible recipients are also required to have an active registration with the System for Award Management (“SAM”) (https://www.sam.gov)
2 | Recordkeeping Requirements
Generally, your organization must maintain records and financial documents for five years after all funds have been expended
3 | Single Audit Requirements
Subrecipients that expend more than $750,000 in Federal awards during their fiscal year will be subject to a Single Audit
4 | Civil Rights Compliance
Recipients of Federal financial assistance from the Treasury are required to meet legal requirements relating to nondiscrimination and nondiscriminatory use of Federal funds.
1 | Gov Requirements
All eligible recipients are also required to have an active registration with the System for Award Management (“SAM”) (https://www.sam.gov)
2 | Recordkeeping Requirements
Generally, your organization must maintain records and financial documents for five years after all funds have been expended
3 | Single Audit Requirements
Subrecipients that expend more than $750,000 in Federal awards during their fiscal year will be subject to a Single Audit
4 | Civil Rights Compliance
Recipients of Federal financial assistance from the Treasury are required to meet legal requirements relating to nondiscrimination and nondiscriminatory use of Federal funds.
Eligible Costs Timeframe
As a subrecipient of an SLFRF award, subrecipients may use SLFRF funds to cover eligible costs that your organization incurred during the period that begins on March 3, 2021 and ends on December 31, 2024, as long as the award funds for the obligations incurred by December 31, 2024 are expended by December 31, 2026.
Costs for projects incurred by the recipient prior to March 3, 2021 are not eligible.
As a subrecipient of an SLFRF award, subrecipients may use SLFRF funds to cover eligible costs that your organization incurred during the period that begins on March 3, 2021 and ends on December 31, 2024, as long as the award funds for the obligations incurred by December 31, 2024 are expended by December 31, 2026.
Costs for projects incurred by the recipient prior to March 3, 2021 are not eligible.
Eligible Uses
The pandemic has broadly impacted Americans and recipients can provide services to prevent and mitigate COVID-19 to the public. Eligible uses include:
A. Medical and PPE/protective supplies
B. Transportation to reach vaccination or testing sites, or other prevention and mitigation services for vulnerable populations
C. Support for prevention, mitigation, or other services in public facilities
2 | Assistance to Households
Treasury presumes the following households and communities are impacted by the pandemic and may be eligible for the following programs:
Impacted: Low- or-moderate income households or communities; Households that experienced unemployment; Households that experienced increased food or housing insecurity; Households that qualify for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, Childcare Subsidies through the Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) Program, or Medicaid
A. Food assistance (e.g., child nutrition programs, including school meals)
B. Emergency housing assistance: rental assistance, mortgage assistance, utility assistance, assistance paying delinquent property taxes, counseling and legal aid to prevent eviction and homelessness & emergency programs or services for homeless individuals, including temporary residences for people experiencing homelessness
C. Assistance to individuals who want and are available for work, including job training, public jobs programs and fairs, support for childcare and transportation to and from a jobsite or interview, incentives for newly employed workers, subsidized employment, grants to hire underserved workers, assistance to unemployed individuals to start small businesses & development of job and workforce training centers
D. Burials, home repair & home weatherization
E. Programs, devices & equipment for internet access and digital literacy, including subsidies for costs of access
F. Cash assistance
G. Assistance in accessing and applying for public benefits or services
Treasury presumes the following households and communities are disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and may be eligible for the following programs:
Disproportionately Impacted: Low -income households and communities; Households residing in Qualified Census Tracts; Households that qualify for certain federal benefits
H. Pay for community health workers to help households access health & social services
I. Remediation of lead paint or other lead hazards
J. Investments in neighborhoods to promote improved health outcomes
K. Improvements to vacant and abandoned properties, including rehabilitation or maintenance, renovation, removal and remediation of environmental contaminants, demolition or deconstruction, greening/vacant lot cleanup & conversion to affordable housing
3 | Public Sector Capacity
Recipients may use SLFRF funding to restore and bolster public sector capacity, which supports government’s ability to deliver critical COVID-19 services. Under the increased flexibility of the final rule, SLFRF funding may be used to support a broader set of uses to restore and support public sector employment.
-
- Restoring Pre-Pandemic Employment
A. Hire back employees for pre-pandemic position
B. Hire above the pre-pandemic baseline - Supporting and Retaining Public Sector Workers
A. Providing additional funding for employees who experienced pay reductions or were furloughed since the onset of the pandemic, up to the difference in the employee’s pay, considering unemployment benefits received.
B. Maintaining current compensation levels to prevent layoffs. SLFRF funds may be used to maintain current compensation levels, with adjustments for inflation, to prevent layoffs that would otherwise be necessary.
C. Providing worker retention incentives, including reasonable increases in compensation to persuade employees to remain with the employer as compared to other employment options.
- Restoring Pre-Pandemic Employment
1 | COVID-19 Mitigation and Prevention
The pandemic has broadly impacted Americans and recipients can provide services to prevent and mitigate COVID-19 to the public. Eligible uses include:
A. Medical and PPE/protective supplies
B. Transportation to reach vaccination or testing sites, or other prevention and mitigation services for vulnerable populations
C. Temporary medical facilities and other measures to increase COVID-19 treatment capacity
D. Emergency operations centers & emergency response equipment (e.g., emergency response radio systems)
E. Public telemedicine capabilities for COVID-19 related treatment
F. Support for prevention, mitigation, or other services in public facilities
2 | Public Safety, Public Health, and Human Services Staff
SLFRF funding may be used for payroll and covered benefits for the portion of eligible staff time spent on COVID-19 response through the period of performance. Dispatchers, firefighters, emergency medical responders, and supervisor personnel that directly support public safety staff are eligible staff.
Restricted Uses
While recipients have considerable flexibility to use Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to address the diverse needs of their communities, some restrictions on use of funds apply.
- Recipients may not deposit SLFRF funds into a pension fund;
- Recipients may not use SLFRF funds to offset a reduction in net tax revenue caused by the recipient’s change in law, regulation, or administrative interpretation;
- Recipients may not use SLFRF funds as non-Federal match where prohibited:
- Recipients generally may not use SLFRF funds directly to service debt, satisfy a judgment or settlement, or contribute to a “rainy day” fund
- SLFRF funds may not be used for a project that conflicts with or contravenes the purpose of the American Rescue Plan Act statute
While recipients have considerable flexibility to use Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to address the diverse needs of their communities, some restrictions on use of funds apply.
- Recipients may not deposit SLFRF funds into a pension fund;
- Recipients may not use SLFRF funds to offset a reduction in net tax revenue caused by the recipient’s change in law, regulation, or administrative interpretation;
- Recipients may not use SLFRF funds as non-Federal match where prohibited:
- Recipients generally may not use SLFRF funds directly to service debt, satisfy a judgment or settlement, or contribute to a “rainy day” fund
- SLFRF funds may not be used for a project that conflicts with or contravenes the purpose of the American Rescue Plan Act statute