Launching the ARPA Chat Series

The once in a generation investment opportunity envisioned in the American Rescue Plan Act can be both exciting and overwhelming for local governments and other beneficiaries. When it comes to the state and local government relief funds, the U.S. Treasury Department must still issue the final rule to guide eligible uses, reporting requirements and other issues. The official comment period on the Interim Final Rule closed on July 16, 2021, and it could be weeks before the final guidance is issued. Local governments should use this time to identify and document pandemic impacts and carefully plan for this investment opportunity. As many leaders have emphasized, patience is an important pillar in successful ARPA planning.

Given the complexity of the guidelines and opportunities for creative solutions, Centralina is launching a series of peer to peer chats to facilitate exchange among local governments on approaches to spending plan development and implementation of projects in the eligible use categories. Share your ideas, learn from others and ask questions in these quick, 30 min virtual chats. Centralina staff will host the dialogue and insights will be shared out at monthly regional managers group meetings. The ARPA Chat Series is open to all levels of government employees and elected officials.  Save the date and register at the links below. For more information email info@centralina.org

When a construction or repair contract over $300,000 involves a building, the procurement and contract are subject to additional requirements under N.C.G.S. 143-128. Therefore, this question must be answered to determine whether the additional statutory requirements apply to this procurement scenario.

The micro-purchase threshold is a federal procurement threshold under which competitive procurement is not required. The default micro-purchase threshold is $15,000, but local governments may increase the micro-purchase threshold up to $50,000. An explanation of increasing the micro-purchase threshold and a template for the required annual self-certification is available here.