Meadowtown opens public hearing on $38,819 in ARPA funds; council discusses moving money to water fund to backfill prior years

Meadowtown officials opened a public hearing to solicit comment on reallocating $38,819 in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant money that was deposited to the town’s general fund and later used to pay water salaries.

At the hearing, a meeting facilitator said the town received $38,819 in ARPA funds and that the money had “strings attached,” including reporting and allocation requirements. The facilitator said the town placed the funds in the general fund when received, then administratively charged parts of those funds to water salaries to cover payroll in fiscal years 2021, 2022 and 2023.

Why it matters: moving the ARPA money from the general fund into the water fund would formalize the prior charges and allow Meadowtown to report the expenditures to state and federal transparency systems as required. Town staff advised that without completing this reclassification the town would either need to return the money to the federal government or adjust the accounting to show the water fund as the beneficiary of the $38,819.

Officials described the chronological constraints that shaped the decision. The facilitator said the grant required an allocation commitment by Dec. 31 of the relevant year and the town reached that deadline before it could complete a public hearing and other procurement steps. The facilitator described consulting with a tracking service (Polaris) and with peers; those consultations limited feasible options and led the town to backfill payroll rather than attempt a larger capital project.

Councilmembers and staff asked procedural questions about how the transfer and future reallocations would work. A councilmember asked whether the $38,819 reflected actual payroll expenses in the three-year span; staff confirmed the total covered payroll for named town employees during the stated period and that the town’s federal report lists the specific dates and employee names included in the charge. The facilitator said, “We have committed to those funds,” and explained the paperwork steps required: move the amount from the general fund into the water fund, upload updated transparency reports for 2021–2023, then — if the council later decides — transfer portions to other funds (for example roads or electrical) through subsequent public hearings.

Officials also said the Utah League of Cities and Towns and other county contacts had advised smaller municipalities that backfilling wages was a common administrative approach for communities under the $1 million threshold, because it avoided the procurement and contracting requirements that accompany larger capital projects.

Town staff emphasized that using the ARPA funds to backfill prior payroll does not obligate the water fund to use the money for ongoing 2024–25 wages; officials described the reclassification as an accounting step that documents prior use and preserves the money for possible future reallocation at public hearings. The facilitator noted that if the council decided against moving the funds into water, the town could return the grant money to the federal government, leaving the water budget short by the $38,819 that had been charged against it.

The hearing closed after public comment was opened and no objection was recorded to the reclassification process. A motion to close the public hearing was made and seconded, and the facilitator called for a voice vote: “All in favor? Aye.” The council closed the hearing; the transcript does not record a formal appropriation vote to move the funds during the hearing.

What’s next: Officials said the council will consider any requested reallocations in upcoming budget meetings and that a June budget hearing will be an appropriate time to propose using portions of the reclassified ARPA money for specific projects. Any transfer out of the water fund to another fund would require a separate public hearing and formal council action before the money is spent.