- Funding Schedule
- View current ARPA funding schedule here.
- Building Nonprofit Capacity Grant Program
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The Building Nonprofit Capacity Grant Program is awarding $2.1 million in one-time grants to local nonprofits impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. These grants will help nonprofits enhance their capacity to effectively respond to COVID-19-related challenges. Priority will be given to efforts such as increasing staffing capacity and staff training, implementing capital improvements, and enhancing internal infrastructure through software and system upgrades.
Funding for this grant is a result of Johnson County's investment of funds received from the federal government through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
Interested applicants will participate in a two-part application process set to open on Monday, Aug. 14, 2023.
Click here for full grant details, including application timelines.
- Direct Assistance Program
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Apply to the Direct Assistance Program between April 25, 2022 through May 27, 2022.
Program details, including required documentation, application timelines, and FAQs are available on the Direct Assistance Program web page.
Programa de Asistencia Directa en español. - How to Apply for ARPA Funding
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County staff is currently developing ARPA-funded programs. The Board is not accepting proposals for these programs at this time. More information about the ARPA-funded grant programs will be posted here when the programs have been developed:
- Grant program to support minority-owned businesses
- Grant program to provide infrastructure and capital needs funding for local nonprofit programs that respond to the COVID-19 pandemic
- Grant program to provide capital needs of local arts organizations
- Public Input
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Johnson County solicited public input from May to October 2021. Read the final report on Johnson County's public input here.
In addition to online surveys and questionnaires, Johnson County conducted six in-person public input sessions:
Thursday, August 12, 1:30 to 3 p.m., Robert A. Lee Community Recreation Center, 220 S. Gilbert Street, Iowa City
- Visioning session and roundtable discussion for Johnson County nonprofits and service providers.
- Open house listening session for urban communities (Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty, Tiffin, and University Heights).
- Addressing negative economic impacts of COVID-19 pandemic (residents, workers, business owners, and impacted industries).
- Facilitated session for rural residents and small communities in northern Johnson County (Oxford, Tiffin, Solon, Shueyville, Swisher, and unincorporated areas).
- Facilitated session for rural residents and small communities in southern Johnson County (Hills, Lone Tree and unincorporated areas).
- View the meeting agenda here.
- Summary of public input to date with public comment to follow.
- An online public input survey was available to residents from May 26, 2021 through October 25, 2021. Results of that survey will be part of this presentation.
- Meeting in a Box
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Would you like to host your own ARPA input session? The Meeting in a Box is a tool intended to support any group in Johnson County that wants to contribute to the public input process. Anyone can host or facilitate a meeting--from an informal group of friends to a regularly-scheduled meeting of a community organization. The Meeting in a Box provides a guide for the conversation, but the host can change or adapt the approach as needed.
Access Meeting in a Box materials here.
Residents are still welcome to host meetings, but their feedback will not be incorporated into the final report to the Board of Supervisors on November 17. Please return any completed meetings to Allison Wells at [email protected].
- ARPA Leadership Team Updates
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The ARPA Leadership Team provides updates to the Board of Supervisors Work Sessions at 9 a.m. on the third Wednesday of each month. You can stream past and future Work Sessions here. The ARPA Leadership Team presented updates on the following dates:
- May 26, 2021
- June 9, 2021
- June 30, 2021
- August 4, 2021
- August 18, 2021
- September 1, 2021
- September 8, 2021
- October 6, 2021
- October 13, 2021
- October 27, 2021
- November 3, 2021
- November 8, 2021
- November 15, 2021
- November 16, 2021 *Joint work session with the City of Iowa City 4 p.m.
- November 17, 2021
- December 8, 2021
- December 15, 2021
- December 21, 2021
- January 19, 2022
- January 26, 2022
- February 9, 2022
- February 23, 2022
- March 23, 2022
- Past Funding Decisions
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On November 18, 2021 the Board of Supervisors made ARPA funding decisions for the current fiscal year, ending on June 30, 2022. The Board will continue to review future years' budgets as part of the yearly budget cycle.For an updated funding schedule, see tab above, which is updated regularly.
View initial budget here. - Same Day On Demand Transportation Service
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With the support of the American Rescue Act Plan (ARPA) funds, Johnson County expanded access to transportation for residents throughout the county experiencing barriers. This new service, operated by Johnson County SEATS, offers same day accessible rides to those without access to an alternative form of transportation.
Click here to see information about this service or to request a ride
On March 11, 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was signed into law by President Biden. This legislation established the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund. Through the Fiscal Recovery Fund, Congress provided State, local, and Tribal governments with significant resources to respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency and its economic impacts through four categories of eligible uses:
- To respond to the public health emergency or its negative economic impacts, including assistance to households, small businesses, and nonprofits, or aid to impacted industries, such as tourism, travel, and hospitality;
- To respond to workers performing essential work during the COVID-19 public health emergency by providing premium pay to eligible workers;
- For the provision of government services to the extent of the reduction in revenue due to the COVID-19 public health emergency relative to revenues collected in the most recent full fiscal year prior to the emergency; and
- To make necessary investments in water, sewer, or broadband infrastructure.
It is the mission of the Johnson County Board of Supervisors to enhance the quality of life of residents by providing exceptional public services in a collaborative, responsive, and fiscally-accountable manner. True to our mission, the Board will take a three-pronged approach to utilizing Johnson County's American Rescue Plan Act funding:
- stabilize our community;
- strategize together to invest in future prosperity; and
- organize our resources to enable an inclusive recovery from COVID-19.
On January 6, 2022, the U.S. Treasury released the Final Rule on eligible uses of these funds. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Treasury website.
For additional information on the American Rescue Plan Act, please visit the National Association of Counties funding breakdown website.
Please direct any specific questions regarding American Rescue Plan Act funding to Allison Wells, Grants Manager; Sean Donaldson, Grants Specialist; James Bechtel, Project and Systems Analyst