(By The Integrity Project) *
PART 1:
ARPA IN MOUNT VERNON: WHAT IS ARPA ANYWAY — AND WHAT WAS IT SUPPOSEDTO DO?
When COVID-19 shut down the country, local governments lost revenue almost overnight. Congress responded with the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021—better known as ARPA—a one-time federal rescue package meant to keep communities stable when tax bases collapsed, businesses closed, and families faced economic crisis.
This was not normal funding. It was emergency money designed to help cities survive and emerge stronger.
ARPA had three core purposes—and some clear rules:
- Stabilize Local Budgets and Keep Essential Services Running
Cities were expected to use ARPA funds to prevent financial collapse, not to create new, long-term expenses.
Dos:- Fill temporary budget gaps caused by revenue loss.
- Keep police, fire, sanitation, and EMS staffed and operational.
- Prevent layoffs of municipal workers.
- Cover pandemic-related overtime or hazard pay.
- Maintain transit, public health clinics, or schools facing shutdown threats.
Don’ts:- Create new permanent positions without long-term funding.
- Increase salaries unrelated to pandemic need.
- Use ARPA to mask structural deficits year after year.
- Pension deposits, debt payments, and judgments.
- Undocumented gifts, bonuses, or payments.
- Fund economic development unrelated to demonstrated pandemic impact.
In other words, the point was to stay afloat, not reinvent city government.
- Provide Direct Relief to Residents and Small Businesses
ARPA wasn’t just about government operations—it was also meant to aid people directly harmed by the crisis.
Dos:- Emergency rental and utility assistance.
- Grants to small businesses forced to close.
- Food distribution and child-nutrition programs.
- Aid to essential workers.
- Financial counseling, legal aid, eviction prevention.
Don’ts:- Grants to programs with no eligibility criteria tied to pandemic impact.
- Cash giveaways used as political campaign branding.
- Fund nonprofits with no accountability or measurable outcome.
The money was meant to help those hit hardest—not reward allies.
- Fund Eligible Infrastructure and Public Health Improvements Tied to Pandemic Recovery
A portion of ARPA funding could be used for infrastructure and public health initiatives, but only where the projects addressed pandemic-related needs or fell within specifically authorized federal categories.
Dos:- Broadband expansion.
- Lead pipe replacement.
- Water/sewer upgrades.
- Public health infrastructure.
- Technology modernization for government operations.
Don’ts:- Recurring software subscriptions without future funding.
- Large capital projects started with no completion plan.
- Development deals or capital spending unrelated to COVID impact or ARPA-eligible categories.
In other words, ARPA was meant to help cities recover and rebuild. It was emergency money, not a slush fund to bankroll new recurring expenses, political initiatives, or unrelated pet projects and wish-list spending.
How Much ARPA Money Did Mount Vernon Receive?
According to the National League of Cities’ ARPA allocation database (which uses U.S. Treasury disbursement data), Mount Vernon received $41,108,657 in State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF).
To put that in perspective:- The city’s 2021 gross budget was $123,298,088.
- ARPA equaled roughly one-third of an entire year’s budget.
This was an unprecedented, transformative infusion of cash for a city plagued by financial and operational instability.
But ARPA came with conditions: cities were required to document every expenditure, track procurement, report subrecipients, file mandatory Treasury reports, and retain records for five years.
Cities that failed to comply could be forced to return misused funds.
Why ARPA Mattered So Much for Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon was in fiscal distress long before COVID.
In 2020, the New York State Comptroller issued a fiscal assessment of Mount Vernon finding that the city:
- Lacked reliable financial records
- Maintained outdated ledgers
- Failed to reconcile millions in cash accounts
- Relied on one-shot revenues to cover ongoing expenses
- Missed filing deadlines by years
- Repeatedly failed to correct prior audit findings
- Could not produce accurate information about fund balances or capital accounts
The State warned that things would likely worsen due to weak internal controls, recurring deficits, and persistent lack of transparency.
In other words: ARPA did not arrive in a city with functioning fiscal systems—it arrived in a city where the State was already sounding alarms.
So, for Mount Vernon, the federal funds weren’t just a relief package; they were a stress test of whether the city could manage major public funding responsibly.
What Happened Next: The 2025 State Report
In February 2025, the New York State Comptroller released Boom or Bust? Federal Relief Aid and Local Government Finances in New York State. The report cautions that cities receiving large proportional ARPA allocations face significant risk of a “fiscal cliff” if they use temporary federal money to fund recurring costs. This is because when the temporary used to mask financial shortfalls disappears, the budget doesn’t just decline gradually—it drops off suddenly and sharply, like stepping off of the edge of a cliff.
Critically, the report states that Mount Vernon could not be evaluated at all because it failed to submit required financial reports—despite receiving more than $20.5 million in ARPA funding in both 2021 and 2022. Without these filings, the State could not issue fiscal stress scores, assess spending outcomes, or conduct basic oversight.
ARPA required responsible stewardship; it was a stress test of whether Mount Vernon could manage significant public funds with competence and transparency.
Mount Vernon failed that test.
* * *Where This Series Goes From Here
ARPA gave Mount Vernon a once-in-a-generation opportunity to stabilize core systems, repair infrastructure, and strengthen government capacity. Whether, ultimately, that opportunity was used responsibly is the question this series will explore.
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Next: Part 2 — ARPA in Mount Vernon in 2021
How the first year of spending set the tone: early contracts, early beneficiaries, and – early warning signs?
*The Mount Vernon Civic Integrity Project (“The Integrity Project”) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit civic organization dedicated to strengthening transparency, accountability, and lawful governance in the City of Mount Vernon. As we move through the incorporation and 501(c)(3) process, we believe it is essential to begin releasing the information we have collected so the public is not kept in the dark. Sunshine is a disinfectant, and Mount Vernon needs more of it.
Links:1. chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/SLFRF-Compliance-and-Reporting-Guidance.pdf
2. https://www.osc.ny.gov/local-government/audits/city/2020/09/17/city-mount-vernon-financial-reporting-and-oversight-2020m-96
3. chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.osc.ny.gov/files/local-government/publications/pdf/fiscal-cliffs.pdf4. chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.mountvernonny.gov/DocumentCenter/View/11617/City-Audit-Report-2020
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