This is a big year for the Legislature as we decide how to appropriate the $1.04 billion in federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) distributed to Nebraska. My office has fielded a significant amount of questions about how this process will play out this session and who will receive those federal dollars. I’d like to lay out the process for the public and those interested in receiving ARPA dollars.
The Final Rule for ARPA was released on January 6 of this year which lays out what sort of projects qualify under the rules. I’d like to highlight what sort of projects generally qualify below.
•Supporting the public health response (COVID-19 prevention and mitigation, medical services, behavioral health care, and preventing and responding to violence)
•Responding to a negative economic impact (assistance to households, assistance to small businesses of less than 500 employees, assistance to nonprofits, aid to impacted industries such as travel, tourism, hospitality, or similarly impacted industries, and public sector capacity)
People are also reading…
•Investment in water, sewer, or broadband infrastructure (generally clean drinking water projects and storm or sewer runoff)
•Premium pay for essential workers
A major first step in determining how these federal dollars will be distributed was completed this week with hearings on the Governor’s proposal being heard in the Appropriations Committee. The Committee processed all the items in his proposal last week and heard from some of his cabinet members this week during the hearing on major items included in his proposal.
One of the most significant items included the Perkins County Canal at $100 million in ARPA dollars, along with $400 million from the Cash Reserve Fund. The proposed project would secure water flowing into the South Platte River from Colorado, made possible by the South Platte River Compact of 1923. The Appropriations Committee heard from the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources on how this project fits with relevant federal laws under the Environmental Protection Agency to qualify for ARPA.
A couple of other items were presented by the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy on $25 million for wastewater and drainage system updates at the State Fair Grounds in Grand Island and $60 million for drinking water projects across the state. The State Fair Grounds project came into focus in 2019 after heavy rain overwhelmed the current drainage system, causing significant flooding. The drinking water projects will be used to modernize outdated water systems, including the replacement of lead lines and filtering nitrates.
The Committee also heard from the Department of Economic Development on many of its ARPA-related proposals. One of the most anticipated items is the $100 million in Shovel-Ready projects, following the passage of a bill last year by Senator Mike McDonnell. Other proposals discussed includes $60 million for site and building development for industrial uses and $75 million for workforce housing grants to attract and retain talent in Nebraska.
The Committee also heard from the Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice on a proposed $47.7 million expansion of its facility to acquire new land and ramp up its ability to train additional law enforcement. The Crime Commission laid out the needs of the State to address an increase in violence due to the pandemic and how ARPA funds could be used to address this need.
While these projects only touch the surface of the various proposals under the Governor’s ARPA recommendations, there are many more requests for funds from various bills introduced this year, in addition to other requests before the Committee. The Appropriations Committee has had 85 ARPA-related bills referenced to it, in addition to a number of other bills referred to other committees. In all, I expect there to be about $4 billion in ARPA-related requests this year.
The Committee has a monumental task before it to whittle that number down to $1.04 billion in a short session, all while ensuring that everything that advances from committee onto the floor of the Legislature is ARPA-compliant. I am confident in the ability of my fellow committee members and am grateful to all who have brought their requests to the Committee.
As always, I remain open to your feedback on how I may address the issues that mean most to you. Please do not hesitate to contact my office with any questions you may have. Thank you to those who have taken the time to express their views on various issues. My contact information is: Senator John P. Stinner, District 48 State Capitol, PO Box 94604, Lincoln NE 68509-4604; telephone: 402-471-2802; email: jstinner@leg.ne.gov.