Wright City leaders say they’re going to begin discussions in earnest this week about how to allocate more than $860,000 in federal funding from the “American Rescue Plan Act” (ARPA) approved by the U.S. Congress in 2021 to aid in COVID relief.

Discussions of how to use these federal funds have been dragging in almost every local town and county government receiving them, due to longstanding questions about how the money can be used and what accountability comes with it, local officials have said. Any money that was misused would have to eventually be paid back, leading to hesitation to spend any of it.

Relief from that deadlock came early in January, said Wright City Administrator Jim Schuchmann, when the federal treasury announced a new ruling that offers substantial flexibility for small governments. One of the acceptable uses for the ARPA funds is to replace revenue that’s been lost due to the COVID pandemic, and the new ruling allows local governments to automatically claim up to $10 million in lost revenue, Schuchmann explained.

“It’s basically like taking a standard deduction on your tax return,” Schuchmann commented.

In short, towns in this area are more free to use their ARPA funding for any government service that would normally be paid for through a different source of revenue.

Wright City has already received half of the $869,000 in ARPA funding it expects to be granted, with the other half slated to arrive later this year. This Thursday, Jan. 27, the Wright City Board of Aldermen will begin planning how to put that money to use, Schuchmann said.

“This money has to be spent by 2025. It’s a pretty wide window,” Schuchmann said. “Over the next few months, (the board) will assess what will be the best place to put these funds.”

Mayor Michelle Heiliger told The Record that one potential use for the funds is to fast track high-priority public projects, and another could be to purchase more efficient equipment for city services.

“We want the citizens in town to see the impact of that money coming in, and see the improvements and things we’re able to spend it on,” Heiliger commented. For example, she said projects currently on Wright City’s to-do list, and potential targets for ARPA funds, are playground improvements at Diekroeger Park and engineering for multiple major street projects.

One of the other benefits of having the federal funding coming in is that the city was able to give staff competitive pay raises this year, knowing that the outside funding would be available for project spending, Heiliger added.

Citizen input is welcome in helping the board of aldermen decide how best to use the funding, Heiliger said. The board will meet at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 27 at Wright City Hall.

“We’re always open to having people come and talk to us. It’s important to hear what our constituents think,” Heiliger said.