The American Rescue Plan Act, Section 9901—The Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund
Summary
This Congressional Research Service Insight of May 11, 2021, by Grant A. Driessen, summarizes the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund (CSFRF) created by Section 9901 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (P.L. 117-2), which provides a total of $362 billion in general federal payments to state, local, tribal and territorial governments. ARPA provided $219.8 billion through the CSFRF: $195.3 billion to the 50 states and DC, $20 billion for tribal governments and $4.5 billion for five territories. Treasury pays states in one or two installments depending on unemployment, funds remain available until December 31, 2024, and eligible uses include the COVID-19 response, premium pay for essential workers, lost revenue, and water, sewer or broadband infrastructure. Table 1 lists each allocation in billions of dollars, led by California at 27.017 and Texas at 15.814.
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INSIGHTi
The American Rescue Plan Act, Section 9901—
The Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund
May 11, 2021
Section 9901 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA; P.L. 117-2) provides a total of $362
billion in general federal payments to state, local, tribal, and territorial governments, $220 billion of
which is directed to the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund (CSFRF). Similar assistance was
provided through the $150 billion Coronavirus Relief Fund established in the CARES Act (P.L. 116-136).
This Insight summarizes the assistance provided to the CSFRF, as established in Section 9901 of ARPA.
Allocations sorted by state and territory are provided in Table 1. Additional guidance on allocations,
timing, and eligible uses are available at the Treasury State and Local Assistance website. (ARPA also
created the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund [CLFRF], discussed in a companion Insight.)
Allocation Methodology
ARPA provided a total of $219.8 billion through the CSFRF, distributed differently across state,
territorial, and tribal governments:
States and DC: $195.3 billion to the 50 states and the District of Columbia (DC), with
(1) $0.755 billion to DC (i.e., the difference between DC’s allocation and the minimum allocation
to the 50 states provided in the CARES Act);
(2) $25.5 billion distributed equally across state governments ($0.5 billion each);
(3) $169.045 billion distributed to states (and DC) in proportion to their seasonally adjusted
unemployed population from October through December 2020, as measured by the Bureau of
Labor Statistics; and
(4) Adjustments to ensure that each state and DC receives a total of at least $1.25 billion from the
CSFRF and Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund, a separate fund for local governments
established in Section 9901.
Tribal Governments: $20 billion provided for tribal governments, with
(1) $1 billion allocated equally across all tribal governments; and
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(2) $19 billion allocated to all tribal governments through a process to be determined by the
Secretary of the Treasury; and
Territories: $4.5 billion set-aside for Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the
Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, with
(1) $2.25 billion allocated equally across the five territories (0.45 billion each); and
(2) $2.25 billion allocated based on relative population.
Timing
ARPA provided Treasury with the discretion to make CSFRF payments to states in one or two tranches,
based on state unemployment levels. Treasury released guidance specifying that payments will be made in
one installment for states with unemployment levels at the time of Treasury certification that are more
than two percentage points higher than February 2020 levels. (State governments must complete
certification, consisting of payment delivery instructions and an authorized representative signature,
through the Treasury submission portal to receive CSFRF payments.) All other states are to receive
payments in two installments, with all first payments made in May 2021. For states receiving two
tranches, the second tranche payments are required to be made no later than 12 months after Treasury
certifies the first round of payments. Treasury’s guidance also stated that payments to all territorial
governments will be made in a single installment, also in May 2021. Payments to tribal governments are
to be made in two installments—May 2021 and June 2021—with the latter based on unemployment data.
All payments are to remain available until December 31, 2024, with funded projects completed no later
than December 31, 2026. Amounts not spent or used for ineligible purposes must be repaid to Treasury.
Eligible Uses
ARPA specifies that funding provided through the CSFRF is generally only to be used to
respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency and its negative economic impacts;
provide premium pay to essential workers or grants to employers with essential workers;
replace lost, delayed, or decreased revenue, relative to projections issued before January
27, 2020, reduced by the projected budgetary effect of certain tax cuts enacted after
March 3, 2021 (to prevent payments from offsetting the effect of such tax cuts); or
make necessary investments in water, sewer, or broadband infrastructure.
CSFRF recipients may transfer funds to private nonprofit groups, special purpose units of state or local
governments, or public benefit corporations involved in the transportation of passengers or cargo. Table 1
shows the total CSFRF payments provided to state, tribal, and territorial governments and the projected
number of installments that Treasury will use to make payments.
Table 1. CSFRF Payments by State and Territory
(in billions of dollars)
State Total Allocation Projected # of Payments
Alabama 2.120 2
Alaska 1.012 2
American Samoa 0.479 1
Arizona 4.183 2
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State Total Allocation Projected # of Payments
Arkansas 1.573 2
California 27.017 1
Colorado 3.829 1
Connecticut 2.812 1
Delaware 0.925 1
DC 1.802 1
Florida 8.817 2
Georgia 4.854 2
Guam 0.554 1
Hawaii 1.642 1
Idaho 1.094 2
Illinois 8.128 1
Indiana 3.072 2
Iowa 1.481 2
Kansas 1.584 2
Kentucky 2.183 2
Louisiana 3.011 1
Maine 0.997 2
Maryland 3.717 1
Massachusetts 5.286 1
Michigan 6.540 2
Minnesota 2.833 2
Mississippi 1.806 2
Missouri 2.685 2
Montana 0.906 2
Nebraska 1.040 2
Nevada 2.739 1
New Hampshire 0.995 2
New Jersey 6.245 1
New Mexico 1.752 1
New York 12.745 1
North Carolina 5.439 2
North Dakota 1.008 1
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Northern Mariana Islands 0.482 1
Ohio 5.368 2
Oklahoma 1.870 2
Oregon 2.648 1
Pennsylvania 7.291 1
Puerto Rico 2.470 1
Rhode Island 1.131 1
South Carolina 2.499 1
South Dakota 0.974 2
Tennessee 3.726 2
Texas 15.814 1
U.S. Virgin Islands 0.515 1
Utah 1.378 2
Vermont 1.049 2
Virginia 4.294 1
Washington 4.428 2
West Virginia 1.355 2
Wisconsin 2.533 2
Wyoming 1.068 2
Tribal Governments 20.000 2
Total 219.800 -
Source: U.S. Treasury.
Note: Items may not sum to total due to rounding.
Author Information
Grant A. Driessen
Specialist in Public Finance
Disclaimer
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