USDEPARTMENT OF THETREASURY
March 11,2023 markstwo yearssince President Joseph Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ("ARPA")into law on March 11,2021 In recognition of the second anniversaryof ARPA, the U.S.Department of the Treasury("Treasury") released a report,Two YearsIn: TheAmericanRescuePlanAct'sHistoricInvestmentsinaStronger EconomicFutureon March 14, 2023
The ARPASecond AnniversaryReport highlightsthe following accomplishments:
- ARPAsuccessfullyprovided $350 billion in emergency aid to over 30,000 state,local, Tribal,and territorial governments,which includesthe Northern Mariana Islands government,through the State and Local Fiscal RecoveryFunds(SLFRF) program;
- ARPA'sCapital ProjectsFund (CPF) invested in affordable,high-speed internet infrastructure projectsthat will deliver reliable broadband accessto over 1 4 million homesand businessesin 34 statesand SLFRFfundstowardsbroadband;
- EmergencyRental Assistance (ERA) program - expanded and extended byARPA- hasmade over 10 3 million paymentsin rent,mortgage,and utility assistance to householdsat risk of evictionsand foreclosures;
- Small businessassistance programswere launched that will aid up to 100,000 small businessesover the next decade;
- ARPA'sexpanded Child Tax Credit helped lower child povertyin 2021 by46%; and
- ARPAdelivered the largest single infusion of federal funding support to Tribal nationsin U.S.historyfor pandemicrecoveryand economicdevelopment
See Exhibit Cfor U.SDepartment oftheTreasuryUpdates.
SPENDINGPLANS
Spending Plan No. 4 and ARPAProjected Expenses
On March 2,2023,Budget and Finance Director submitted an ARPAProjected Expenseslisting to Secretaryof Finance ("SOF") TracyB Norita asa result of a meeting between DOFand the Judiciaryon February2,2023 SOFNorita acknowledged receipt and forwarded it to Special Assistant for the Office of Management and Budget Virginia C Villagomezon the same day. The Judiciaryprioritized utility expenses,professional services,communications,and personnel,among others
On March 23,2023,Chief Justice Alexandro C Castro formallyrequested assistance from Governor Arnold I Palaciosin reconciling the Judiciary'sdebtsto vendorsand itsusage of ARPAfundsunder Sub-Grant Award No(s) CNMI22004 and CNMI22047.The Judiciaryemphasized that itsFiscal Year 2023 operationsbudget isseverelyinsufficient and doesnot cover itsannual utilitiesamount or feesfor indigent defense,requiring heavyreliance on itsARPAfundsto cover the expenses The Governor'sproposal of the FY2023 budget amendment kept the Judiciary'sbudget at the existing amount of $6,492,148.00,again not taking into account the Judiciary'soperational needsand through recent discussions,it wasagreed that approximately$50,000 per month would be available for the Judiciary'scontinuityof operationsthrough the end of the fiscal year
Since the Judiciaryreceived the ARPAsub-grant award,it hasinvested $2,095,788 30 in Personnel and $3,527,278 85 in All Others Asof March 31,2023,over 42%of the award hasbeen encumbered or obligated The Judiciarycontinuesto provide 100%funding for twelve full-time employeesstrategicallyplacing them in critical areassuch asthe Judiciary Administrative Office,Information SystemsOffice,and Rota Centron Hustisia It also created an ARPAOffice
See Exhibit B.4 for 09/07/22 SpendingPlanNo.4 andARPAProjectedExpenseslisting.
ARPA REPORT [MAR 2023] | 5
DESCRIPTION NO 1 N0 2 NO 3 NO 4 PERSONNEL $2,000,000 00 $4,000,000 00 $4,654,203 00 $5,109,493 54 ALL OTHERS $22,100,000.00 $23,000,000.00 $8,506,500.00 $8,051,209.46 TOTAL $24,100,000 00 $27,000,000 00 $13,160,703 00 $13,160,703 00
TABLE1: SPENDINGPLAN COMPARISON(S)
