Can ARP funds from revenue loss calculations serve as a match to other federal programs like traditional municipal dollars?

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s (“Treasury”) Final Rule on Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (“CSLFRF”) states, “…the funds available under sections 602(c)(1)(C) and 603(c)(1)(C) of the Social Security Act for the provision of government services, up to the amount of the recipient’s reduction in revenue due to the public health emergency, generally may be used to meet the non-federal cost-share or matching requirements of other federal programs.”[1]

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (“IIJA”) amends sections 602(c) and 603(c) of the Social Security Act to include an additional eligible use of CSLFRF used to satisfy non-federal match requirements:

This amendment permits the use of [CSLFRF] funds to meet non-federal matching requirements of any authorized Bureau of Reclamation project, regardless of whether the underlying project would be an eligible use of [CSLFRF] funds under the water and sewer infrastructure eligible use category.[2]

Treasury clarifies that further guidance will be provided to award recipients on the scope and covered expenses of such projects.[3] Further, under section 60102 of the IIJA, American Rescue Plan (“ARP”) funds may be used to meet the non-federal match requirements of the broadband infrastructure program authorized under that section.[4]

Treasury has also enumerated ineligible uses of CSLFRF funds serving as non-federal match:

[CSLFRF] funds may not be used as the non-federal share for purposes of a state’s Medicaid and CHIP programs because the Office of Management and Budget has approved a waiver as requested by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services pursuant to 2 CFR 200.102 of the Uniform Guidance and related regulations.[5]

Prior to using CSLFRF awards to satisfy non-federal match requirements, Treasury states that award recipients should:

[1] confirm with the relevant awarding agency that no waiver has been granted for that program, [2] that no other circumstances enumerated under 2 CFR 200.306(b) would limit the use of SLFRF funds to meet the match or cost-share requirement, and [3] that there is no other statutory or regulatory impediment to using the SLFRF funds for the match or cost-share requirement.[6]

CSLFRF funds beyond those available for the provision of government services may not be used to meet the non-federal match or cost-share requirements of other federal programs other than as expressly provided for by statute.[7]

Recipients should consider all compliance and reporting requirements enumerated in the Uniform Guidance[8] and Treasury’s Compliance and Reporting Guidance[9] before using funds for non-federal match purposes. Notably, Treasury’s Compliance and Reporting Guidance has included language regarding matching in Section 6:

There are no matching, level of effort, or earmarking compliance responsibilities associated with the [CSLFRF] award…[CSLFRF] funds may only be used for non-Federal match in other programs where costs are eligible under both [CSLFRF] and the other program and use of such funds is not prohibited by the other program.[10]