August 1, 2022
Boulder County Releases 2022 Performance Report for Federal Recovery Funds
The 2022 ARPA SLFRF report presents detailed information on the uses of funds to support a strong and equitable recovery that addresses racial, health, and economic disparities in Boulder County.
Boulder County, Colo. -- Today the Boulder County Board of Commissioners (BOCC) announce the publication of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF) 2022 Recovery Plan Performance Report. The report highlights Boulder County funding allocations for approved projects through June 30, 2022, information on planning and community engagement processes, and Boulder County administration and implementation of ARPA SLFRF funds.
Boulder County has currently approved two primary rounds of funding allocations from its $63,359,749 in ARPA SLFRF funding: $5,531,880 for Immediate Needs and $36,500,000 for Phase 2 projects, as well as funding for administrative costs and reserves. The report, available on the county's ARPA website, includes details of these investments centering on equity as a fundamental goal for the Boulder County recovery plan.
“In this reporting period Boulder County residents will learn how their participation helped us to co-create programs, along with the ARPA Working Group members, to invest in the areas of greatest concern for our communities, including Economic Challenges, Housing Affordability, and Mental Health and Social Resilience,” Boulder County Commissioner Martha Loachamin said. “Our efforts continue to bridge the work of the County as it moves toward recovery to support community members that historically have been excluded due to systemic racial, social, and gender inequalities.”
The report explains planned and ongoing programs and services for the different phases of ARPA implementation. The initial Immediate Needs funding allocation is addressing needs that arose earlier in the pandemic, such as community-wide COVID-19 testing and vaccinations, funds to address food insecurity, and employment services, among others.
Affordable housing development, assistance for families with young children, support for nonprofits serving underserved and underrepresented communities, and mental health access programs are just some examples of Phase 2 projects recommended and approved following a broad community engagement and planning phase. The Recovery Plan includes a full list of projects approved through June 30, 2022
“Besides including detailed information on the inclusive Community Engagement process, the ARPA Recovery Plan offers a comprehensive picture of the progress to date on the use of ARPA funds to promote Boulder’s County COVID response and recovery and explains how future projects will impact priority populations that have suffered the disparate economic, health, and other effects of the pandemic,” added Boulder County Commissioner Claire Levy. “We are very appreciative of this pandemic relief funding to help communities in need.”
The Coronavirus ARPA SLFRF program provides resources to meet local needs with four separate eligible use categories:
- Respond to the far-reaching public health and negative economic impacts of the pandemic
- Provide premium pay for essential workers
- Invest in water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure
- Replace lost public sector revenue
“The County continues to invest resources into ways to share financial and program information with the public about these impactful investments in our community. Our goal on administrative transparency is for the public to have access information about the allocation of ARPA funds through multiple resources such as Boulder County dedicated ARPA websites, a financial transparency dashboards, and other tools including this detailed annual Recovery Plan report,” stated Boulder County Commissioner Matt Jones.
For more information about the community process, updates, and next steps in Boulder County’s allocation of local government ARPA funding go to www.boco.org/ARPA.