US Treasury Releases Final Rule on ARPA Funds for Broadband

Last summer, the US Treasury Department released interim rules on how cities and counties could use their allocations of Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLRF) funds from the American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA). The rules provided some guidance on what broadband projects could be funded, but left some questions unanswered. Many local governments decided to wait until the final Treasury rules were released before identifying broadband investments while others moved forward.

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The final rules have now been released and, in a win for local control, they provide more latitude for broadband investments than even the interim rules.

Casey Lide with Keller and Heckman LLP has written a great summary on the Beyond Telecom Law blog. 

For cities and counties that have been considering the use of these ARPA funds for broadband projects, now is the time to make plans. With long lead times for telecommunications supplies and equipment,  it will take time to put those plans into effect.