Manitowoc County Government met last week with the Towns and Villages Association in regard to dispersing the County’s share of American Rescue Plan Act money, which is approximately $24 million.
County Executive Bob Ziegelbauer said about $16 million was deposited into county coffers.
”So we’re voluntarily sharing the money with municipalities, the cities, towns, and villages and we’re matching their spending on the ARPA money,” the County Executive explained. “They are getting about $8 million so we’re matching that $8 million on water projects, lead pipe lateral removal in the cities, broadband, and emergency radios.”
Ziegelbauer said they are sharing the cost 50/50 as cities, towns, and villages split that $8 million based on their size and budgets.
He also said, “We all have got four years to spend the money so we’re not in a rush, but the municipalities want to have projects going up this year and next year so we’re facilitating that.”
The Federal Government has definitively laid the groundwork for what the money can be used for with highways being exempt.
A breakdown of the allocation of funds was not made available.
The money must be spent by December 31st, 2026.