Congress passed the final budget package for 2023 in late
December, which included a significant provision to make the
American Rescue Plan’s State and Local Fiscal Relief Funds
(SLFRF) more flexible, known as ARPA Flex.
The ARPA Flex provision, which was championed by Senator Alex
Padilla, provides additional flexibility for local
government to spend their allocations of the Coronavirus State
and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, including:
Spending to provide emergency relief from natural
disasters, including temporary emergency housing, food
assistance, financial assistance for lost wages, or other
immediate needs.
Spending on transportation infrastructure eligible
projects and matching funds.
Spending on any program, project, or service that would also
be eligible under HUD’s Community Development Block Grant
program.
The amendment caps the amount a grantee may spend on these new
purposes at the greater of $10 million or 30% of the total grant
amount.
