Howard County announced the submission of its quarterly American Rescue Plan (ARP) Project and Expenditure Report to the U.S. Department of Treasury. Additionally, County Executive Ball announced that data collected from the County’s Community Survey is available at www.howardcountymd.gov/american-rescue-plan-arp-funding.
Howard County learned this past March that it would receive a total allocation of $63.3 million in federal ARP funding. The first half ($31.6 million) of the county’s federal ARP funding was received last June, with the second half expected to be received later this summer.
To date, Howard County has expended over $23.5 million of its initial $31.6 million ARP allocation, focusing its spending on education, health care and front-line workers, housing, public safety and business and industry support.
Supporting County schools, students and educators has been a top priority, with nearly $11 million in county ARP funding expended on HCPSS educators, school bus drivers and for the expansion of school-based mental health services to all public schools in Howard County.
Investment in health care workers and programming has been a priority as the County continues to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, with nearly $8 million provided to support Howard County General Hospital, Howard County Health Department and front-line County employees, community-based mental health services and the expansion of COVID-19 testing resources.
Other expenditures include $2 million for foreclosure prevention grants to homeowners, more than $1.5 million for the County’s Body Worn Camera program, and more than $800,00 in industry support for tourism, small businesses and nonprofit organizations.