Tracking Porter County's ARPA Spending

This page details the expenditures of Porter County government's Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Funds awarded through the American Rescue Plan Act and is updated frequently.

Part I. Auditor's Office Internal Controls

Our Porter County ARPA Fiscal Recovery Funds: Internal Control Policies and Procedures outlines our commitment to full accountability and transparency of the county's ARPA spending as well as our office processes and procedures for claims processing, monitoring, and reporting to U.S. Treasury.  

Part II. Tracking County Government's ARPA Expenditures

The following section details the status of Porter County government's State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) expenditures by individual project, along with a brief description and our audit analysis of how each project complies with U.S. Treasury's Final Rule. 

Premium Pay -- County Government Employees
Plan Amount:Up to $1,000,000
County Council Appropriation:$969,816
Appropriation Date:Feb. 22, 2022
Amount Expended, to Date:$877,437
Status:Paid with March 4 pay date

Discussion: State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds may be used to provide premium pay of up to $13 per hour for eligible workers performing essential work during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the 2022 budget hearings and in the 2022 Salary Ordinance, the Porter County Council determined that premium pay of $4,000 would be awarded to certain eligible full-time employees in the county government's public health and safety sectors.  For more details, see our Premium Pay Audit Analysis.

 

Behavioral Health Study
Plan Amount: $25,000
Appropriation:$25,000
Appropriation Date:Feb. 22, 2022
Amount Expended to date:Pending
Status:Active

Discussion: The Porter County Commissioners retained PYRCE Healthcare Group of River Forest, Ill. to prepare a "Porter County Suicide Awareness and Prevention Assessment." The report was presented to the Porter County Commissioners on May 17 and to the Porter County Council on June 28. To view the report, click here. 

Township Assistance Program
Plan Amount:Up to $500,000
Appropriation:$500,000
Appropriation Date:Feb. 22, 2022
Amount Expended to date:Pending
Status:Active

Discussion: Porter County's 12 townships will share in an allocation totaling $500,000, with the amounts based on population. The Commissioners' ordinance, amended in May, allows the townships to use their SLFRF allocation for any allowable purpose in the following categories: Public Health and Negative Economic Impacts, Premium Pay, and Investments in Water, Sewer, and Broadband Infrastructure. To see the township funding breakdown, click here.

The following are the approved, written agreements detailing the terms and conditions of the township awards. The agreements will be  posted here after they are finalized by the county and the townships. The dates shown reflect the date that the Porter County Commissioners approved the agreements.

Morgan Township (7-12-2022)       Portage Township  (8-2-2022)

Marquette Greenway Trail
Plan Amount:Up to $2,500,000
Appropriation:$2,500,000
Appropriation Date:Feb. 22, 2022
Amount Expended to date:$189,843
Status:Active

Discussion: The Marquette Greenway Trail is an ambitious regional effort that, when completed, will provide a walking and bicycle trail extending approximately 58 miles from Grand Rapids, Michigan to Chicago along the "south shore" of Lake Michigan. Porter County's portion of the trail will extend in part through the Indiana Dunes National Park, providing visitors with a unique experience in the dunes ecosystem. The new trail will replace and update the current Calumet Bicycle Trail, which now runs on a utility easement and which has fallen into disrepair. Porter County will use a portion of its ARPA funding for three different segments of the trail under the expenditure categories of "Aid to Impacted Industries -- Tourism" and "Revenue Replacement." More information about Porter County's portion of the Marquette Greenway Trail can be found at the following link: Marquette Trail