Treasury, March 2024 SLFRF Newsletter: Reporting Updates, Frequently Asked Questions, and More

Summary

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds newsletter of March 12, 2024 (Volume 2, Issue 1) tells recipients that the Treasury Portal opens for Project and Expenditure Reports on April 1, 2024 and stays open until April 30, 2024. Recipients whose total SLFRF award equals their total expenditures will see a close out question, which does not itself start the close out process. On March 5, Treasury updated FAQ 2.14 so that housing projects eligible under more than a dozen federal housing programs are presumptively eligible uses, as is affordable rental housing limited to 120% of area median income for at least 20 years. The newsletter reports that President Biden visited a fire training academy in Allentown, Pennsylvania built with more than $2.3 million of SLFRF funds.

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“Treasury, March 2024 SLFRF Newsletter: Reporting Updates, Frequently Asked Questions, and More.” Original at home.treasury.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/treasury-march-2024-slfrf-newsletter-reporting-updates-frequently-aske-7619240c6f/, SHA-256 5b0deb17ccecb1f0ed5fd873d0fbe76b828a83295db4986eb9c2bdcc6e7df802.

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From: U.S. Department of the Treasury <subscriptions@subscriptions.treas.gov>
Sent: Tuesday, March 12, 2024 2:26 PM
Subject: Courtesy Copy: March State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) Newsletter

Volume 2, Issue 1 | March 12, 2024
Welcome to your second edition of the SLFRF Newsletter, dedicated to the needs of SLFRF recipients. In this
newsletter, you’ll find U.S. government leaders connecting directly with local leaders on their SLFRF-related
efforts, key updates on the April 30 reporting deadline, and an update to the SLFRF frequently asked
questions (FAQs).

Please forward this newsletter to someone you know who would benefit from receiving this newsletter, and let
them know to subscribe here.

PRESIDENT BIDEN, SECRETARY YELLEN VISIT LOCAL LEADERS

During a recent tour highlighting the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s ARPA and SLFRF-funded community
improvements, President Biden delivered coffee and pastries to a new fire training academy in Allentown,
Pennsylvania built using more than $2.3 million of their SLFRF award.
In her remarks to local leaders in January, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen notes that “as of last
month, state and local government employment has fully recovered—in less than half the time it took in the
Great Recession. And state and local government real output growth recovered within only six quarters—also
less than half the time.” She also emphasized that “had the Administration’s response been much smaller,
less flexible, less supportive of cities and states, we might have seen the same outcomes that we saw after the
Global Financial Crisis.”

KEY UPDATES
Top Items for this Newsletter:
1. Treasury’s submission portal will be updated with a question asking recipients about their readiness for
program close out (more on this below).
2. The new SLFRF FAQs update the existing FAQs to reflect common inquiries regarding program updates,
including guidance for how to use funds for affordable housing projects, premium pay, and new eligible
uses.
3. The Non-Entitlement Units of Local Government Webinar is now available, which includes a reporting
portal demonstration and other program and compliance information.
4. The NEU Quick Reference Guide offers resources that may assist NEU recipients.
5. SLFRF Explainer videos assist with a variety of useful topics, including reporting troubleshooting,
reporting resources, user roles, ID.me, and an orientation for new users. The orientation is also helpful
in walking through some of the recent updates to the SLFRF website.
RECENT NEWS
• Note the Close Out Question in your Upcoming Reporting Portal Submission
The Treasury Portal opens for the Project & Expenditure (P&E) Reports on April 1, 2024, and will
remain open until April 30, 2024. For some recipients, whose total SLFRF award is equal to total SLFRF
expenditures, there will be a close out question available. This question will read “Have you spent your
full SLFRF award and are ready to close out the award? If you are ready to close out, please be aware that
this is not your final report. Included in forthcoming guidance will be information on how to close out your
SLFRF award, including completion of the final report.” Recipients should respond accordingly and await
additional guidance from Treasury regarding close out procedures. Please note that responding to this
question does not initiate the close out process; rather it will help Treasury communicate more directly
with recipients as we design and implement the close out process.

• Use your SLFRF Award Funds for Affordable Housing Projects
Treasury continues to strongly encourage the use of SLFRF for affordable housing-related uses. On March 5,
Treasury updated SLFRF FAQ 2.14 to provide additional flexibility and promote administrability in the use
of these funds. Specifically, this update provides that if a housing project is eligible to be funded (or in some
cases are funded) under one of more than a dozen specified federal housing programs, it is a presumptively
eligible use of SLFRF funds. This includes projects financed with loans purchased by Fannie Mae or Freddie
Mac under certain affordable and workforce housing programs.
In addition, Treasury clarified that it is presumptively eligible to use SLFRF funds for the development,
repair, or operation of any affordable rental housing unit if the unit has a limited maximum income of
120% area median income (AMI). The AMI limit may be imposed through a covenant, land use restriction
agreement, or other enforceable legal requirement, for a period of at least 20 years.
Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo recently released a blog post highlighting this change and
describing how it relates to the Treasury Department’s other actions to increase the supply of affordable
housing. These include clarifying how states, U.S. territories, and local governments which received Emergency
Rental Assistance funds may use those resources to support the creation of new affordable housing.
Treasury has previously shared several related program resources, including previous clarifications on
affordable housing-related uses and a “How-To Guide” on how to support affordable housing investments.
Earlier in 2023, Treasury released a fact sheet highlighting examples of affordable housing investments
across the country made using SLFRF funds.
2024 SLFRF ROADMAP TO REPORTING
Start preparing for the April 30, 2024 reporting deadline by referring to the 2024 SLFRF Roadmap to Reporting
infographic below. This resource provides a week-by-week breakdown of tasks related to reporting, along with
a few resources to get you started.
ASK THE ANSWER TEAM
• When does the reporting portal open for the April 30, 2024 reporting deadline?

The Treasury Portal opens for the P&E Reports on April 1, 2024, and will remain open until April 30, 2024. If
you received a notice of noncompliance for not submitting your P&E Report, the Treasury Portal remains open
for your report submissions. The reporting period is from April 1, 2023 through March 31, 2024 for Annual
reporters and January 1, 2024 through March 31, 2024 for Quarterly reporters. For assistance in determining
your reporting cadence, refer to the list of recipient reporting tiers on the Reporting and Compliance webpage.

• We’ve already spent and reported our funds. Is the report still required?
Recipients are required to continue to submit reports to Treasury as outlined in the SLFRF Compliance
and Reporting Guidance. Please refer to the section titled “Reporting Guidance” starting on page 16 for
your P&E responsibilities and note the reporting timeline on pages 20-21. Treasury will provide further
closeout instructions that will provide information to recipients on how to complete closeout and provide
final report information.

• Are recipients required to send interest earned on SLFRF payments to Treasury?
Among other things, recipients may use interest earned to defray the program’s administrative expenses.
For a more information, see Section 10 “Miscellaneous” of the SLFRF Frequently Asked Questions.

• How do I access my government’s reporting portal?
Register to use Login.gov on Treasury’s portal at Treasury.gov/Compliance OR ID.me at Portal.Treasury.
gov/CARES/. Scroll to the “Accessing Treasury’s Portal” section for login instructions to access the Treasury
Portal using Login.gov or ID.me. If you still have questions about accessing Treasury’s submission portal,
see the SLFRF explainer videos for Login.gov or ID.me.

Don’t see your question here? Click here to visit the SLFRF Self-Service Resources and here to access
the SLFRF Frequently Asked Questions for more common questions from recipients.

CONNECT WITH US
Please share SLFRF news by forwarding this newsletter to others!
Subscribe to the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds Newsletter by signing up here.

If you require additional assistance, please reach out to us by email:
For questions about the Treasury Portal or for technical support, please email covidreliefitsupport@treasury.gov.

For general questions about the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, please email
SLFRF@treasury.gov.



Questions? Contact Us

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