Flint council transfers $2M in ARPA to water fund, approves audit payments and several reallocations; mayoral budget hearing highlights blight expansion

The Flint City Council on April 25 amended and approved a $2,000,000 reallocation of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds into the citys Water Fund to provide temporary relief to water operations and blunt an otherwise planned rate increase.

Council members debated the measure and an amendment that directed the money as a direct transfer into the Water Fund rather than creating a separate water rate stabilization account; both the amendment (changing 250,097 to 250,097.1) and the final amended resolution passed unanimously, 7-0.

Why it matters: Council members said the transfer gives short-term budget breathing room as administration and utilities staff finish a longer-term distribution system optimization and asset-management plan. Several council members pressed staff for a more detailed, ground-level plan showing how the funds would be used and when residents might see lasting relief from high water bills.

What happened in the meeting

ARPA transfer to water fund: Council amended resolution 250,097 to transfer $2,000,000 directly into the Water Fund (renumbered 250,097.1). City staff described the change as primarily an accounting adjustment that avoids creating a separate stabilization fund; "the accounting is almost identical," Council staff member Mr. Moore said during the discussion. Councilman Dennis Pfeiffer warned the money was short-term: "this $2,000,000, if this passes, is a literal band aid on a bullet hole," he said, urging a wider plan for receivables and collections. The amendment and the final resolution each passed 7-0.

Council debate about water operations also covered: the municipalitys ongoing water-distribution optimization plan, questions about annual main replacement volumes, collection of delinquent bills (staff reported about $6million to $7million previously turned over to collection agencies and ongoing concerns about rising receivables), and uncertainty driven by staff absences in water operations.

Mayors budget hearing and blight expansion: At a separate budget hearing the council heard a presentation of the mayors office, city administrator and blight elimination budgets. The mayors office budget appears larger in the draft because the administration had not yet recognized a pending grant award for technical financial assistance (CS Mott Foundation capacity/fiscal recovery grants) that staff said they expect to receive. The blight program is proposed to increase headcount substantially (discussed moving from about six to as many as 20 positions in the directors plan) and to add forestry work; the administration said it had applied for a $1,000,000 grant from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) to buy equipment for that expansion.

Blight director Grata Brown (speaking to council during the hearing) described plans to do more demolition, nuisance abatement, and targeted forestry/trimming work; he said some demolition work has historically not recovered full costs from property owners and the legal department is evaluating liens and other collection strategies. Council members pushed for clearer plans on staffing, certification and how the city will bill other departments (for example, street maintenance) when forestry crews work on rights-of-way.

Other council votes and motions at the meeting (summary) - Resolution 250,082 (ARPA allocation to Freedom School Collaborative): approved 6-1. Council member Dennis Pfeiffer cast the single no vote in the roll-call as recorded. - Resolution 250,085 (Youth arts program): failed on roll call, 4-3. - Resolution 250,100 (reallocation for youth jobs training/Summer Clean & Safe program): council first left the item in council for further review, then voted 4-3 to send it back to the Finance Committee for follow-up and additional detail on grantees/amounts. - Resolution 250,111.1 (final progress billing / Raymond Robson audit additional charges): approved (roll call recorded as 6-0 with one member absent). City staff told council the outstanding invoices included a $75,000 change order and a $29,000 charge; staff also warned there might be additional charges that were billed to the wrong purchase order and were still under review. - Resolution 250,118 (Uncle Phils Adventures in Philanthropy charitable gaming license recognition): sent to the Government Operations committee for further review (7-0). - The consent agenda passed 7-0. Several items were separated for discussion and voted individually as indicated above.

Council directions and outstanding staff follow-ups - Council repeatedly requested a written, time-bound plan from administration on how the $2,000,000 transfer will be spent, what portion covers the planned 5.9% water purchase increase (staff estimated roughly $500,000 of the transfer would cover a rate-related increase), and what additional actions administration will take to reduce delinquencies and negative receivables. - On blight and forestry, council asked the administration to supply job descriptions, training and certification plans for proposed forestry positions, and a clearer accounting of how costs will be billed between blight, street and other funds. - On the FY2023 audit billings, staff said they will reconcile purchase orders and return to council if additional payments or budget transfers are required.

Quotes "The accounting is almost identical," Mr. Moore said of transferring ARPA dollars directly into the Water Fund rather than creating a new rate-stabilization fund. "This $2,000,000, if this passes, is a literal band aid on a bullet hole," Councilman Dennis Pfeiffer said, urging a comprehensive plan to address receivables and long-term water fund viability.

Ending: next steps and timeline Council directed staff to provide more detailed breakdowns and follow-up memos about the water-fund transfer, the proposed blight staffing and forestry expansion, and the audit billing reconciliation. Several items were returned to committee for more information; the council scheduled follow-up budget and committee work as staff compiles the requested detail.