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Commissioners debate ARPA reallocations, 9-1-1 facility funding and leftover fairgrounds money
Summary
Commissioners and staff reviewed remaining ARPA funds from earlier appropriations, discussed rules for reallocating unspent ARPA money, and debated next steps for potential 9-1-1 facility funding and other projects such as evidence room and fairgrounds improvements.
Trumbull County commissioners and legal and financial staff spent substantial meeting time on May 21 discussing remaining American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) appropriations, whether unspent funds can be reallocated to other eligible projects, and how to fund a proposed 9‑1‑1 facility and other capital projects.
Commissioner discussion centered on an $8.5 million ARPA appropriation that the board had previously allocated across several fairground and public-safety projects. County counsel and staff described a process of deducting actual contract costs from that appropriation and reallocating any remaining balance to other ARPA-eligible uses before the federal deadline. "What's happening now is as these actual contracts, as the actual quotes come through, the commissioners are approving that actual contract and then deducting it off of that $8.50 that you guys had allocated," prosecutor Bill Danzo said.
Commissioner Bernard said national guidance from the National Association of Counties and Treasury staff indicated counties could reallocate leftover ARPA funds to other eligible projects and that many counties were doing so. Other commissioners urged caution and emphasized following county legal counsel. The board discussed specific earmarks that included a $1,000,000 contingency for sheriff payroll support and another $250,000 earmark for sheriff/fairgrounds security; evidence-room work and sheriff vehicle purchases were addressed as items drawing from ARPA earmarks.
The commissioners also discussed broader uses of ARPA and other settlement funds, including opioid-settlement money and whether certain items such as law-enforcement units or equipment could be funded. County officials said that, while some counties used opioid settlement money for law enforcement task forces, funding choices and legal interpretations vary and would require follow-up.
Why it matters: ARPA and settlement funds are significant one-time resources that require careful legal and administrative handling; decisions about reallocating unspent money determine which capital or operational gaps the county can cover without recurring tax increases.
