According to the Ohio Association of Townships (OTA), Boardman Township is set to receive $4.068 million in funding from the American Relief Plan (ARP).
The ARA provides additional relief to address the continued impact of COVID-19. After months of uncertainty, with townships unintentionally left out of original ARP bill language – due to definition inconsistencies for “non-entitlement unit of local government” (NEUs) – it was announced by the US Treasury in May that Ohio was one of eight states in which the state itself would determine ARP eligibility and the definition of NEUs. In late June, township eligibility was placed into first SB 111 and then HB 168; and after signature of HB 168 by Gov. Mike DeWine, townships in Ohio have finally and rightfully been confirmed for direct ARP funding as true units of local government.
According to the OTA, eligible uses include:
• Support public health expenditures, by, for example, funding COVID-19 mitigation efforts, medical expenses, behavioral healthcare, and certain public health and safety staff.
• Address negative economic impacts caused by the public health emergency, including economic harms to workers, households, small businesses, impacted industries, and the public sector.
• Replace lost public sector revenue, using this funding to provide government services to the extent of the reduction in revenue experienced due to the pandemic.
• Provide premium pay for essential workers, offering additional support to those who have and will bear the greatest health risks because of their service in critical infrastructure sectors.
• Invest in water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure, making necessary investments to improve access to clean drinking water, support vital wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, and to expand access to broadband internet.
Half of the APR funding is to be distributed this year and half is to be distributed next year. The funding will be distributed through the Ohio Office of Budget and Management (OBM) by population.
According to the OTA, other townships in Mahoning County set to receive ARP funding includes Austintown, $3.654 million; Canfield, $815,487; Coitsville, $137,852; Ellsworth, $221,129; Goshen, $323,785; Green, $316,348; Jackson, $254,335; Milton, $254,335; Poland, $1,24 million; Smith, $347,040; and Springfield, $668,628.
This article was republished here with permission from the Boardman News.
