Since 2021, Jefferson County has received more than $2.3 million dollars of federal funding distributed under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a national economic stimulus bill passed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, it faces a year-end deadline to spend what’s left of that money.
Roughly $1.8 million of the grant has been spent or formally contracted, according to the county, leaving $541,479 remaining in county coffers. While it has been long understood that those funds would need to be “obligated” by Dec. 31, 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued a notification in July specifying that ARPA funds will only be considered obligated by the deadline if they are committed through an official contract.
Jefferson County now has less than four months to commit the remaining ARPA funding or it will be ceded to the federal government.
“We’re not giving back a dime of that money,” said Jefferson County Commission chair Cory Kirsch. “While there’s a significant amount left, the County can practically sneeze and spend those funds. I’m not worried at all about it getting spent in time.”
According to Jefferson Local Development Corporation (JLDC) project officer Leah Lewis, who helps administer ARPA funding for the county, more than $516,000 of remaining ARPA funds have been loosely planned, but not yet obligated, to local projects and entities.
Among other projects, under the intended spending schedule, Saddle Mountain Park would receive $4000 to install basketball hoops, play equipment, and signage. The county would spend $5000 on surveying, the removal of a barbed wire fence, and signage at Rattlesnake Butte, a property in Montana City that recently was donated to the county as a new public space. The Clancy Community Center would receive $80,000 for plumbing, roof repair, a new furnace and additional HVAC updates.
“Since we first received ARPA funding, we’ve been helping local groups get their application packets and documentation together,” said Lewis. “It isn’t a terribly complicated process, but it’s still a process.
“I’m not worried that the money will get spent. We just need to figure out exactly how, and there may very well be changes as we get closer to the deadline. There are many things we can do with our last (ARPA) dollars, just not return them!” Lewis’s position as JLDC grant administrator would also be paid through ARPA, which would provide roughly $70,000 to cover her salary and fund her office.
The tentative spending schedule also reserves $26,614 to complete a high speed internet project in Whitehall, and up to $15,000 for Great West Engineering as payment for consulting services related to water and sewer projects.
Between $250,000 and $280,000 is tentatively allocated to the Public Health Department, pending final approval of a restoration effort of “Cottage Five,” a former Montana Developmental Center South Campus building that is being considered for a new county health facility. While the project has already received a $426,500 commitment from the state Department of Environmental Quality under its Brownfields program, further planning and funding determinations won’t happen until the county learns whether it has qualified for a Montana Historic Preservation grant of up to $500,000. Should the county decide not to pursue the Cottage Five conversion, the ARPA funding may be repurposed.
“Ultimately, at this point, the money remaining is fungible,” said Lewis. “We’re going to get it spent, and it’s going to have an impact, regardless of what exactly is decided.”
To date, a significant amount of distributed ARPA dollars have gone to supporting the county’s social and economic services. More than $350,000 of ARPA funding was committed to childcare facilities in Boulder and Whitehall. 24 private businesses — including The Monitor, which received $2,500 to support marketing efforts — 15 non-profits, and six tourism groups received grants totalling more than $200,000.
In addition, the Western Legacy Center, a museum and tourist destination in Whitehall, received roughly $245,000 for facility development, staffing, and advertising. The Boulder and Whitehall Chambers of Commerce each received $20,000 for miscellaneous projects, while the Boulder Transition Advisory Committee (BTAC) received $4,000.
Nine assisted living facilities in Jefferson County shared nearly $80,000 of ARPA funding, while 12 emergency medical service providers, including volunteer fire departments and ambulance services split close to $90,000. Roughly $105,000 was allocated for various historical building preservation projects, and $95,000 to 19 local food producers to improve county food security. The Montana Business Assistance Connection, a Helena-based non-profit, received $40,000 to support its small business development work, while nearly $400,000 was committed to various public works and infrastructure improvement projects.
