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City Council OKs $900,000 ARPA allocation for Child Savings Account pilot
Summary
The City Council adopted a resolution to award up to $900,000 in unallocated ARPA funds and accrued interest to the Chattanooga Future Fund’s Child Savings Account pilot, a five-year effort to seed college- and career-savings accounts for Hamilton County students.
The Chattanooga City Council voted to approve up to $900,000 in unallocated American Rescue Plan Act funds and accrued interest for a five-year Child Savings Account pilot administered by the Chattanooga Future Fund.
Haley Nottage, director of the Chattanooga Future Fund, told the council the program opens a simple, online savings account for Hamilton County public-school students using a student number, ZIP code and birthday. Each enrolled student receives a $100 initial deposit and may earn additional incentives — for example, up to $50 for completing extra steps and $25 for parental contributions — while program partners and community giving can multiply those amounts. Nottage said the request before council is intended to fulfill the city’s ARPA commitment to the program and to place funds in an interest-bearing structure to sustain the pilot.
Council members sought clarity on how the funds will be managed and distributed. Councilman Henderson asked whether the $900,000 would be placed in an interest-bearing account and whether the principal would be preserved; Future Fund staff confirmed the payment is intended to fulfill the city’s commitment and that account structures are designed to allow funds to earn interest while supporting annual disbursements to eligible students.
The resolution (item 9c) was read into the record and adopted by voice vote. The clerk’s text authorizes the mayor to award Chattanooga 2.0 unallocated ARPA funds and accrued interest of up to $900,000 as part of the Chattanooga Relief and Recovery Allocation Plan to support the Child Savings Account initiative.
The council’s action completes the city’s stated ARPA commitment to the Future Fund and formalizes the five-year pilot financing; program staff said individual student disbursements will be requested when students graduate and can be paid to the student or to an educational institution on the student’s behalf. The resolution does not specify exact per-student total payouts, which will vary by student participation, additional community matches, and market growth of account balances.
The council adopted the resolution by voice vote; the record shows no roll-call tally in the transcript and the clerk confirmed adoption. Next steps for the program include enrollment outreach, account setup for eligible students, and administrative steps to place the allocated funds into accounts under the Future Fund’s management.
