Tarrant County is reprioritizing some of about$408 million in federal pandemic recovery funds. However, several residents are concerned that some of the newly planned allocations don’t meet spending requirements set by the U.S. Treasury Department.
The concern stems from an ACLU letter calling on the Treasury to investigate local entities that plan to use funding from the American Rescue Plan Acton expanding or establishing jails. The letter was signed by ACLU affiliates in nine states — not including Texas. The letter asserts that state and local governments are misusing ARPA funds to “illegally build and expand prisons and jails.”
Some residents, including a coalition affiliated with Broadway Baptist Church in Fort Worth, say the county’s plan to use federal funds to divert Tarrant County inmates to a private prison falls under the concerns stated in the letter and does not comply with federal competitive bidding requirements.
“The most fiscally prudent move would be to return these funds to already vetted and well considered purposes — child care, public health and housing — as these promises are clearly aligned with our guidelines and will definitely pass muster and not expose the county to significant risk,” Lydia Bean, chair of the Justice Committee at Broadway Baptist Church, said.
The committee sent a letter to members of the commissioners court on Sept. 18 further outlining their concerns.
On Sept. 5, the county approved allocating $22.5 million toward moving inmates to a private prison, the Giles W. Dalby Correctional Facility in Garza County, and $11 million for building a new sheriff training facility. In a statement, the county said it ensured compliance with the Treasury’s rules before allocating the money.
“Tarrant County continues to work diligently within the guidelines provided by the U.S. Treasury to determine the highest and best use of funds for its various ARPA-funded programs,” the county said in a statement.
This is the second time the county will use ARPA funds to move inmates to Garza County. This time, the county said it needed to free up room in the jail to improve its HVAC system. The county previously approved spending $18 million to send 429 inmates to the private prison in 2022.
The county is required to send reports to the Treasury Department outlining how it spent ARPA dollars. The last report, sent in July 2023, includes justification for the $18 million expenditure in 2022. The expenditure falls under community violence interventions and/or substance use services, according to the county’s report to the Treasury. The county also cited evidence that more physical space will reduce the spread of COVID-19 in jails.
“The increased backlog of court cases and increase in crime due to the COVID-19 pandemic has created challenges for the county jail. … To maintain state ratios and provide superior services within the jail, additional space is needed to house inmates,” the report reads.
Possible repayment requirements
The county is required to obligate the federal funds by Dec. 31, 2024, and spend them by Dec. 31, 2026.
The Treasury Department is allowed to identify any project that violates the rules before the 2026 deadline and calculate the amount it expects to be paid back by the recipient. The department will then send an initial notice to the recipient explaining the amount to be recouped.
The recipient would then have 60 days to request that the Treasury reconsider. The department would then get back to the recipient within 60 days with its final ruling, which starts a 120-day clock for the recipient to make the repayment.
Before the recipient has to repay the federal government, the Treasury may allow for more informal mediation and consultation.
Requirements from Treasury Department
The trillion-dollar American Rescue Plan Act was passed in 2021 to help the country recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The act’s state and local fiscal recovery funds program is focused on providing $350 billion to state, tribal and local governments to speed up communities’ recovery.
After the county received the first round of ARPA funding, it conducted a COVID-19 needs assessment in January 2022 to determine the highest priority issues. That assessment resulted in a spending framework centered around four goals: Improve public health, revitalize the economy, strengthen the community and prepare for the future.
Those goals align with guidance from the Treasury Department that outlines the eligible uses of recovery funds through its final rules. Tarrant County is allowed to use up to $10 million on revenue replacement — the most flexible of the eligible uses. Commissioners have “broad latitude to use funds for government service” under the revenue recovery category, according to Treasury guidance.
The remaining $398 million has to fall under one of six categories:
- Responding to public health and negative economic impacts of the pandemic
- Premium pay for essential workers
- Investment in water, sewer and broadband
- Emergency relief from natural disasters
- Transportation projects
- Community development eligible under federal community development block grants
There are a few explicitly prohibited uses of ARPA funds: offsetting reduced tax revenue, making deposits into pension funds, paying off debt, replenishing reserves, reaching judicial settlements and allocating funds for uses that conflict with the stated purpose of ARPA, including anything that undermines efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19.
The county also has to comply with federal laws that require a competitive bidding process.
Despite the county’s assurances, Jackee Cox, a former attorney, is concerned that the contract with Dalby Correctional Facility does not comply with federal competitive bidding requirements.
“Your budget for next year may have to accommodate some paybacks for federal contracts that were not properly vetted before they were issued,” Cox said to commissioners on Sept. 19.
At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here. Rachel Behrndt is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at rachel.behrndt@fortworthreport.org or via Twitter.
This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.