This week's Illinois State Association of Counties (ISACo) News and Views e-newsletter includes an update on actions taken by the Governor last week on legislation of interest to counties, provides guidance about the process counties must follow to receive their second tranche of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Recovery Fund dollars, shares information about a new resource providing technical assistance for the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), provides an update on Governor Pritzker's response to Illinois' census undercount, shares information about affordable housing tax credits, announces an Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR) Local Government Workshop, provides a link for county officials and staff to register for the National Association of Counties (NACo) Annual Conference being held from July 21-24 in Colorado, announces upcoming NACo webinar opportunities, spotlights ISACo's newest corporate partner Harbour Contractors and invites counties to join ISACo. 

Governor Bill Action

The General Assembly has 30 days to transmit a bill approved by both chambers to the Governor. The Governor has 60 days from that point to review and act on the legislation. The following ISACo tracked bills were signed into law by the Governor last week:

HB 568 - Comptroller-Interactive Map (P.A. 102-0907) (No Position)

HB 716 - Public Financing of Judicial Elections Task Force (P.A. 102-0909) (No Position)

HB 1208 - Workers' Compensation Act Changes (P.A. 102-0910) (No Position)

HB 1321 - First Responder Mental Health Grant Act (P.A. 102-0911) (No Position)

HB 1571 - First Responder Child Care Act (P.A. 102-0912) (No Position)

HB 3893 - Eavesdropping Violations (P.A. 102-0918) (No Position)

HB 3949 - Homeless Service Providers Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers (P.A. 102-0919) (No Position)

HB 4392 - Expungement - Drug Test (P.A. 102-0933) (No Position)

HB 4452 - Community Mental Health Act - Levy (P.A. 102-0935) (No Position)

HB 4646 - IMRF Employee Trustees (P.A. 102-0943) (No Position)

HB 4674 - Nursing Home Inspections (P.A. 102-0947) (No Position)

HB 4772 - County Design-Build Authorization Act (P.A. 102-0954) (Support)

HB 4783 - Disaster Relief Act (P.A. 102-0955) (No Position)

HB 4988 - EPA - Public Water Supply Disruptions (P.A. 102-0960) (No Position)

HB 5502 - Emergency Telephone System Act - Various (P.A. 102-0983) (No Position)

SB 1233 - Transportation and Infrastructure Policy Task Force (P.A. 102-0988) (No Position) 

SB 2942 - Criminal Procedure Act - Victim Testimony (P.A. 102-0994) (No Position)

SB 3082 - Local Journalism Task Force - Members (P.A. 102-1001) (No Position)

SB 3097 - Property Tax - Notice of Redemption (P.A. 102-1003) (No Position)

SB 3127 - Emergency Medical Dispatchers - First Responders (P.A. 102-1006) (No Position)

SB 3166 - Professionals Health Program (P.A. 102-1007) (No Position)

SB 3178 - Rivers of Illinois Coordinating Council Act (P.A. 102-1008) (No Position)

SB 3416 - One Day Rest is Seven Act - Collective Bargaining (P.A. 102-1012) (No Position)

SB 3737 - Judicial Facilities Fee - Kendall County (P.A. 102-1021) (Support)

SB 3895 - Affordable Rental Housing Applications and Assessments (P.A. 102-0893) (No Position)

ISACo's "Bills of Interest to Counties Approved by Both Chambers in 2022" report is available via this link. County officials and staff are urged to review this report. 

Second Tranche of ARPA Recovery Fund Allocations 

U.S. Treasury has started the process of allocating the second tranche of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Recovery Funds. Please see below for an overview of the process for counties to receive their second tranche and the new SAM.gov registration requirements that impact this process.

Key highlights to the second tranche payment process include:

1. All counties must have an active SAM.gov registration in order to receive their second tranche of funding.
2. Effective April 4, 2022, the federal government switched service providers and stopped using the DUNS number and began using the Unique Entity ID (UEI) – All counties are required to switch from a DUNS number to a UEI.
3. If a county’s SAM.gov registration expired (12-month coverage) before it is due to receive its second tranche payment (and after April 4, 2022) the county is required to re-active its SAM.gov registration, which will require them to adopt a UEI (instead of a DUNS number) PRIOR TO receiving their second tranche.

Process for Counties to Receive Second Tranche ARPA Recovery Fund Payment

• Section 603 of ARPA provides payments to eligible local governments in two tranches, with the second tranche payment being made no earlier than 12 months after the first payment.
• Consistent with this requirement, Treasury expects to provide second tranche payments to local governments approximately 12 months after their first payment.
• In the coming weeks, Treasury will open the submission portal in a phased approach, allowing counties to access the portal for 30 days prior to their second tranche payment date.
• Counties will receive a notification from Treasury by email letting them know that they can enter the portal – it is very important to make sure that the assigned point of contact is still available to receive future communications:
• The point of contact is the individual designated in the portal during the first tranche submission who will receive email notifications on submission status, including any issues found during the verification and communication regarding payments.
• The individual entering the portal for the second tranche submission will be the same individual with the registered ID.me who submitted for the first tranche allocation.
• If that individual is no longer with the county and you need to designate a new individual, email COVIDReliefITSupport@treasury.gov with the subject line “Entity Name – Update to Designated Individuals” and include the role that needs to be updated along with the full name, title, email and phone number of the new person designated.
• After the email is received by the county, the point of contact will be able to update their entity information to include banking information in the portal.
• In preparation for the second tranche payment, counties should ensure their SAM.gov entity registration is still active – all counties are required to have a SAM.gov registration to receive their second tranche payment
• Note that on April 4, 2022, the federal government changed service providers and stopped using the DUNS Number and began using the Unique Entity ID (UEI) in SAM.gov to identify entities.
• All counties, even those already registered in SAM.gov, must validate their entity information through the new service provider
• Counties may need to provide additional supporting documentation through the new system.
• The General Services Administration (GSA) released FAQs to support counties through this new process.
• Counties are required to renew their SAM.gov registration every 12-months. If a county’s SAM.gov registration expired (12-month coverage) before it is due to receive its second tranche (and after April 4, 2022) the county is required to re-active their SAM.gov registration, which will require them to adopt a UEI (instead of a DUNS number) PRIOR TO receiving their second tranche.

If your county has a question about this process, please contact info@isacoil.org or call us at 217-679-3368. 

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Technical Assistance Guide

The Biden Administration has developed a technical assistance guide that provides a list of over 65 technical assistance resources and programs across the federal government to help communities deliver infrastructure projects under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). The guide is organized by types of infrastructure investments such as transportation, clean energy and power, high-speed internet, water, resilience and environmental remediation. The guide also highlights a number of “place-based” initiatives focused on specific communities and geographies as well as generally applicable technical assistance resources. For each of these programs, the guide includes a description of the program, eligible participants and information on how to get in touch.

The guide is available via this link and has been added to ISACo's BIL resource page available here.

NACo has announced the following upcoming webinar opportunities. ISACo is a proud partner with NACo and encourages counties to participate in NACo membership and activities. 

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law's Broadband Programs: Overview of the NTIA's Notice of Funding Opportunities

(Wednesday, June 1, 2022, 12:00-1:00pm CDT)

Join NACo staff for an overview of the new Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) released by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to administer $48 billion in broadband infrastructure and digital equity funding under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Click on this link to register for this event.

County Two-Generation Strategies for Family Wellbeing

(Wednesday, June 1, 2022, 1:30-2:45pm CDT)

Four years ago, NACo convened county leaders to discuss two-generation (2Gen) approaches to service delivery and poverty reduction, placing families at the center of program design and purposefully connecting services to work together seamlessly to help parents and children achieve success together. In the intervening years, counties have made strides in developing, funding and implementing 2Gen strategies in human services and education. During this roundtable discussion, national experts, county leaders and individuals with lived experience will discuss the progress they have made, what they need for further success and how their peers can replicate these efforts.

Click on this link to register for this event.

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