WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — During a recent special session, the 25th Navajo Nation Council adopted Resolution No. CMY-28-24, a proactive measure aimed at protecting the Navajo Nation’s Fiscal Recovery Funds or American Rescue Plan Act funds, from being reverted back to the federal government if it is signed into law by the Navajo Nation President.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. President Joe Biden signed ARPA into law on March 11, 2021, which allocated $20 billion for tribal nations. The Navajo Nation received approximately $2 billion in ARPA funds.
In July, the 24th Navajo Nation Council adopted Resolution No. CJY-29-22, which allocated over $1 billion of the ARPA funds for various uses including water, electricity, broadband, housing, and other initiatives for the Navajo people. Approximately $210 million of the funding was allocated for regional expenditure plans within each of the 24 legislative districts.
If signed into law, CMY-28-24 will recapture $768 million of unobligated and unexpended ARPA funds. It will also reallocate $521 million of the $768 million to the newly established “Revenue Replacement Reserve” within the Navajo Nation’s General Fund, under a reimbursement method known as “revenue loss” authorized by the U.S. Treasury, to prevent the funds from being reverted back to the federal government. Under the “revenue loss” method, the Treasury allows states, counties, tribes, and other entities to use ARPA funds to reimburse their governments for expenses and financial losses resulting from the pandemic.
Legislation sponsor, Speaker Crystalyne Curley, stated that the 25th Navajo Nation Council and the Budget and Finance Committee have worked, nearly on a daily basis since the beginning of the year, with the Office of the Controller and NNFRF Office, to develop the plan to protect unobligated ARPA funds from reversion. The Treasury fund obligation deadline is Dec. 31.
“The 25th Navajo Nation Council assessed the status of obligated and unobligated ARPA funds to determine the feasibility of expending the funds by the federal deadline and completing the projects,” Curley said. “This new plan will allow the $521 million to be placed into the General Fund and free it from the federal deadlines and federal red tape. These regional projects are immensely critical to our communities and future progress, and we had to act to protect these dollars. We do not want a single dollar of ARPA funding going back to the federal government.”
If signed into law, Resolution CMY-28-24 will amend previous ARPA resolutions and reallocate the $768 million for the following:
- $137.3 million for wastewater treatment facilities
- $62.9 million for additional housing
- $521 million for General Fund reimbursement
- $15 million for NNFRF personnel
- $28.7 million for E911/rural addressing projects
- $2.2 million for vehicles for senior centers
