On alternating weeks, NACo's Resource Roundup highlights opportunities, reports, upcoming events, and other tools, and the County Countdown provides a review of key policy items for county leaders.
The December 31, 2024 deadline for obligating funds under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) program is fast approaching. A recent webinar synthesized five top insights to help local governments meet their goals:
Revenue replacement is not automatic: Revenue replacement is flexible but must follow a two-step process: report revenue loss using Treasury's guidelines and assign funds to specific projects under expenditure category six.
Understand what constitutes an obligation: Obligations include contracts, subawards, payroll expenses for eligible employees and interagency agreements finalized by December 31, 2024.
Obligation vs. spending deadlines: Funds must be obligated by the end of 2024 but can be spent until December 31, 2026, enabling alignment with long-term community priorities like housing or workforce development.
Avoid common errors: Issues such as failing to obligate funds, incomplete personnel cost planning and insufficient documentation can result in compliance challenges or funding loss.
Check your obligation status: Regularly check Treasury’s data dashboard to ensure records match your internal reporting, and address discrepancies during the next reporting cycle.
The NACo AI Regional Forum series offers county leaders an educational, hands-on symposium on artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI (GenAI) for local governments.
Who should attend: Elected officials, appointed officers, department heads and staff from counties nationwide.
Event focus: Explore the AI landscape and its applications for county governments through interactive sessions and expert insights.
First forum date: January 16, 2025, hosted at the Texas Association of Counties in Travis County, Texas.
Mark your calendar and register for this opportunity to enhance your understanding of AI in government.
NACo held a membership call discussing advocacy efforts related to the White House's $98.6 billion disaster relief funding request to address recent disasters, including Hurricanes Helene and Milton, the Maui County wildfires and Midwest tornadoes, as well as unmet needs from prior events.
Impact of weather events: In 2024, the U.S. has experienced 24 billion-dollar disasters, causing hundreds of deaths and massive damage.
Strained resources: Ongoing recovery efforts have exhausted federal programs counties rely on to rebuild and restore their communities.
Learn more: Visit the membership call event page to watch the recording, download presentation slides and learn how to support the supplemental package.
Join NACo EDGE this Wednesday at 1 p.m. EST for an insightful webinar exploring public finance trends that promise more stability and predictability in 2025.
Key topics: Discussions will focus on sustained interest rate levels, inflation volatility and leveraging cash as a strategic income source.
Fiscal impacts: Gain a clearer understanding of fiscal policies likely to affect county governments in 2025.
Actionable strategies: Learn practical steps to optimize financial health in a more consistent economic environment.
