The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming
The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming
According to the Wyoming Governor’s Office, the state’s $1.1 billion allocation of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds have now been fully committed, which means it’s unlikely that any of those funds will need to return to the federal government.
ARPA grant funding has been used for numerous projects in Crook County since it was made available during the pandemic. For example, in early 2023, ARPA funding was secured by the City of Sundance to update the only block on Ryan Street that still has old waterlines and reconnect three existing water service lines, at a cost of $195,157.
The city also secured $1.3 million for the 3rd Street Waterline and Cleveland Street project to repair a major water leak through which the city estimated it was losing 50,000 gallons of water per day, and to relocate service taps located on an old, four-inch galvanized waterline.
The Town of Pine Haven was awarded $222,000 at the end of 2023 for a sewer main project in Glenn Vista, while the Town of Moorcroft was granted $800,000 for the second phase of its Powder River Water Main project, which continues the process of replacing failing infrastructure.
Of the money received by Wyoming, around $584 million was used to replace revenue lost as a result of the economic downturn caused by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. This was mostly used within the Department of Health and Department of Corrections to conserve the dollars appropriated to them, while some was put into permanent savings.
“The ARPA funds appropriated by the Federal government will be paid for by our children and grandchildren,” said Governor Mark Gordon. “It is fitting that we use those funds at a state level to reduce the potential tax burden of Wyoming’s current and future taxpayers.”
The Legislature appropriated the rest of the ARPA funds to support mental health, healthcare, infrastructure, water and sewer projects.
Not all communities were able to obligate their funds within the amount of time mandated by the federal government. The Legislature gave Gordon authority to create a process through which those funds could be redeployed.
Most funds were redeployed to community projects with an emphasis on reducing communities’ cost share of water and sewer projects. An estimated $76.7 million was redeployed for various projects, the majority into community infrastructure projects.
