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Committee approves ARPA-funded phones and network switches; vice chair confirmed
Summary
The committee approved two resolutions to spend ARPA funds on new phone hardware and network switches for the Community Services Building and confirmed Marty Brewer as committee vice chair after a vote.
The Richland County Community and Health Services Standing Committee voted on two ARPA-funded purchases and confirmed its vice chair at the May 1 meeting.
Vice chair confirmation: The committee re-confirmed Marty Brewer as vice chair after the body determined an earlier vote had not closed nominations. Sandra Kramer moved to confirm and a second was recorded; the committee recorded the motion as approved by voice vote.
ARPA purchases: The committee approved two resolutions to use federal ARPA funds allocated to the public-health unit. The packet shows $353,000 in ARPA funds for public health use this year; the committee approved:
- $24,765 to buy new desk and office phones for the Community Services Building. Trish Clements told the committee the phones are end-of-life and vendor support ends in mid-2025. The department said the vendor provides technical support as part of the purchase.
- $48,471.28 to buy network switches for the Community Services Building. Committee members said switches are needed for devices in the building to communicate and that failing to use ARPA funds would require the county to budget for the switches in next year’s levy-funded capital plan.
Other ARPA uses: Clements told the committee the ARPA allocation has been used sparingly to date; the county has used funds for leadership training, a vaccine refrigerator and website work and retains a multi-hundred-thousand-dollar balance. “We have not used much … probably still around $250,000,” Clements said as an approximate figure.
Why it matters: Using ARPA funds for infrastructure upgrades prevents immediate levy-funded expenditures and updates aging technology used by public-health and social-services staff.
Ending: Both ARPA items will move to the full county board for final approval following the committee vote. The vice chair confirmation was recorded and the committee adopted the outgoing schedule change proposals for future meetings.
