PIERRE, S.D. (SDNW) – South Dakota lawmakers, state agency leaders and water system managers are hustling to spend roughly $700 million in COVID-era funding on water and sewer projects before the federal government claws it back.
The money was part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a $1.9 trillion aid package Congress and the Biden administration passed in 2019 to help states recover from the pandemic.
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ARPA rules require states to allocate all the funds by the end of this year and spend it by the end of 2026 or ship it back to Washington for possible usage by other states.
The deadlines, coupled with difficulty in completing large-scale water and sewer projects during labor and materials shortages, have instilled a sense of great urgency among the Legislature and the state Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR) , which is responsible for permitting water and sewer projects.
“Hundreds of millions of ARPA dollars are still unspent, so until it’s done, none of us can feel comfortable,” said state Sen. Helene Duhamel, R-Rapid City, a lawmaker leading the effort to get projects completed. “It’s caused me some sleepless nights. And until everything is resolved at the end of the session, it’s a nail-biter.”