Baltimore panel reviews ARPA spending: $473.4M spent, some agencies behind schedule

The Baltimore City Council Budget and Appropriations Committee heard a quarterly oversight presentation from the Mayor’s Office of Recovery Programs on federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, during which staff reported that all ARPA awards to the city have been obligated and $473,400,000 had been expended as of June 30, 2025.

Shamaya Kearney, deputy city administrator and acting chief recovery officer, told the committee that "all $641,170,126 awarded to Baltimore City has been obligated" and that the office is focused on meeting the statutory expenditure deadline of 12/31/2026. Kearney said the city increased expenditures by $38,500,000 since the prior quarter and submitted the required annual report to the U.S. Department of the Treasury on July 31, 2025.

Why this matters: the city must both obligate and spend ARPA funds within federal deadlines to avoid relinquishing them, and the committee used the hearing to examine which agencies and grant recipients are on track and which require follow-up.

Kearney said 65 of 126 grants directly awarded by the recovery office to city agencies, quasi‑government entities and nonprofits have been closed, representing roughly $147,700,000 in completed spending. She reported that city agencies had expended about 70% of their obligated amounts (approximately $345,000,000) while quasi‑government organizations and nonprofits had expended about 86.8% of their obligations. Overall expenditures reported to the committee totaled $473,400,000 as of June 30, 2025.

The presentation identified a small number of city agencies and partner organizations with less than 50% expenditure to date and explained reasons for lower spending. For the Department of Transportation (DOT), Kearney said delays reflected contract award timing, a bid protest on one contract, and project prioritization; notices to proceed have been issued and work is "on track for June 2026 completion," she said. Josh Wilson, project manager for the Department of Transportation, told the committee that DOT selects ADA ramp and sidewalk locations using criteria "outlined in the complete streets manual," prioritizing immediate safety concerns, construction quality, service requests and community input.

Office of Performance and Innovation (OPI) spending was reported at about 45%, largely tied to staffing and to development of a data warehouse and agency performance plans. Kearney described plans to revise performance measures for nine agencies covered by CityStat, to develop a data dictionary clarifying measure calculations and sources, and to hold in‑depth conversations with agencies ahead of the next budget year.

School and library projects were highlighted. The Baltimore City Public School System (BCPSS) has an updated expenditure rate of 42% (a slide error previously listed it as 37%), with work underway on a City Springs replacement building and design services for Edmondson High School career and technical education renovations. Construction at the Maryvale (Maryville) High School football field is expected to begin in October 2025, Kearney said. For the Enoch Pratt Free Library, Kearney said branch renovation work experienced some delays but two branches have completed work and an additional branch is expected to reopen in September; she said increased costs at the first three branches may affect allocations to other branches and the recovery office is working with library leadership to identify options.

During questions, Councilman Gray asked whether residents can still request sidewalk or ramp work. Kearney and Wilson said locations have been selected but that DOT will provide the committee with a comprehensive, district‑by‑district list of selected ADA ramp and sidewalk projects so council members can share details with constituents. Kearney also agreed to provide the committee a schedule showing which agencies will stand up additional CityStat or staff programs funded by ARPA so the committee can track forthcoming deliverables.

No formal votes were taken at the hearing. The committee recessed after the presentation and question period.

Looking ahead: committee members asked staff to return to the next quarterly hearing with a schedule of planned CityStat/OPI deliverables and a district breakdown of DOT ADA ramp and sidewalk projects so the council can monitor progress through the remaining ARPA expenditure period ending 12/31/2026.