The Simmering GOP Criticism of State and Local ARPA Spending
Republican lawmakers in the House and Senate have been bashing projects paid for with American Rescue Plan Act dollars that they see as wasteful. It could be a sign of further scrutiny to come if they take back one or both chambers of Congress.
Feds Launch $1B Initiative to Rework Infrastructure That Cut Apart Cities
The Biden administration says places that prioritize community outreach as they design project proposals will have an advantage over others.
City Official: State Transportation Agencies Block Street Safety Progress
The Idaho city council president told congressional lawmakers that state policies are designed to make sure vehicles go fast. She and others offered local solutions to make roads safer for drivers and pedestrians.
New Online Hub to Help Cities Apply for Federal Infrastructure Funding
The $50 million initiative will provide advice and resources to municipalities, especially small towns, through public sector groups and nonprofits, according to Bloomberg Philanthropies.
Infrastructure Week Finally Yields Actual Infrastructure Projects
Inflation and workforce shortages are causing difficulties. Still, local officials and the Biden administration are touting progress.
White House Wants to Ensure Good Stewardship of Infrastructure Funds
New guidance directs agencies on implementation of the $1 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
Local Governments Vie for New Round of Congressional Earmarks
The revival of what critics deride as "pork" yielded $2.7 billion for localities this year. Now they're looking to secure even more of the federal cash. “We've had dozens of communities across our district submit requests,” says one House lawmaker.
Federal Agencies Pledge to Provide Funding More Equitably to Disadvantaged Communities
The departments said they will do more to address systemic racism in their programs and procedures and work more closely on these efforts with localities.
‘There’s a Large Amount of Fraud Out There,’ Says Special IG for Pandemic Recovery
The role is “not a political job in any way, shape or form” and “if we go out of business, then I think you're missing a key element of … oversight,” Brian Miller says.
Biden is Doubling Down on a Push to Roll Back Single-Family Zoning Laws
A $10 billion proposal in the president's budget would use federal grants as an incentive to spur changes with the local rules, which critics blame for stifling affordable housing and fueling racial inequities.
New Senate Bill Aims to Improve Federal Coordination With States and Localities
The measure has bipartisan support, but similar efforts in recent years have fizzled. Will this push be different?
Federal Pandemic Aid is Providing a Boost to City Housing Programs
City officials are tapping American Rescue Plan Act dollars to expand affordable housing and reduce homelessness, challenges that predate Covid-19 but that were also heightened by it.
How Your Government Agency Can Recoup Millions of Dollars
COMMENTARY | Recovering indirect costs from grants and contracts can help refill the general fund, which is under pressure due to rising costs and ongoing needs related to the pandemic.
City Officials Condemn Congress' Failed Plan to Claw Back ARPA Funds, Vow to Fight Future Attempts
The controversy over the aid to states could reemerge on Capitol Hill in the days ahead. Meanwhile, President Biden offered suggestions for how cities spending American Rescue Plan dollars.
One Year Into ARPA Rollout, Spending Varies as Scrutiny Mounts
Billions in state and local aid from the American Rescue Plan Act have gone to combat the pandemic, but also to build monuments and fix state buildings. Republicans are increasingly questioning the need for all the funding and how it is being spent.
Bridging the Digital Divide with American Rescue Plan Act Funding
COMMENTARY | One year after ARPA was signed, states, cities and counties are making meaningful progress to expand broadband access.
Biden Tries to Hit Reset on Domestic Agenda in State of the Union
The president renewed his case for child care and other social programs as a way to cut costs for families facing inflation. But political obstacles remain and Russia's attack on Ukraine presents a growing crisis abroad.
White House Moves to Identify 'Disadvantaged' Communities in Line for Federal Funding Boost
The administration wants to steer more money to areas most in need and has released a draft of places that should get more help.
The Biden Administration’s Plea to ‘Sanctuary’ Cities Gets a Cool Reception
The Department of Homeland Security is trying to foster greater cooperation with local governments on immigration enforcement following the strained relations of the Trump years.
Infrastructure Update: $6B Federal Bridge Funding Boost Arrives for Small Localities
With thousands of city and county bridges in “poor condition,” local leaders say “It’s about time.”
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies
Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link
If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.
Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.
If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.
Cookie List
A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:
Strictly Necessary Cookies
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Functional Cookies
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Performance Cookies
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Sale of Personal Data
We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.
Social Media Cookies
We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.
Targeting Cookies
We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.
Help us tailor content specifically for you: