National League of Cities policy deadline approaches

The National League of Cities (NLC) invites all member cities to submit resolutions and national municipal policy (NMP) amendments for consideration as part of the NLC’s annual policy development process. The deadline for submissions is Friday, August 14, 2009. All proposals submitted by the deadline will be forwarded to the appropriate policy and advocacy steering committees for review during their fall meetings. Approximately 35 Washington State local elected officials serve on one of the NLC policy and/or steering committees.

Survey of federal legislative issues

In early August, the AWC Federal Legislative Committee will conduct a survey of mayors, council members, city managers and other city officials to help determine federal policy issues of importance to cities and towns in our state. The results of the survey will help the AWC Legislative Committee set the federal agenda, through the established policy process. AWC plans to work closely with Washington State’s strong Congressional delegation on those matters of importance to our cities and towns.

Accountability & transparency top priority for ARRA funding

President Obama has made it clear that every taxpayer dollar spent on our economic recovery must be subject to unprecedented levels of transparency and accountability. The state must ensure that money provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act) is going to the right projects and is used in the right way to help our citizens and our economy. Governor Gregoire particularly appreciates the accountability measures included in the recovery package.

The Governor has begun certifying projects that are eligible to receive federal recovery funding. This certification is necessary for the projects to receive funding and is a key component of the Recovery Act’s accountability process. Beginning this month, funding recipients will be providing quarterly reports detailing their use of the funding they were awarded. These reports will be posted on the www.recovery.wa.gov website.

Reporting Requirements

To better understand some of the particulars regarding the reporting requirements, the following definitions apply:

Recipient: Non-Federal entity that receives Recovery Act funding as Federal awards in the form of grants, loans or cooperative agreements directly from the Federal Government.
Subrecipient: Non-Federal entity that expends Federal awards received from another entity to carry out a Federal program.
Vendor: A dealer, distributor, merchant or other seller providing goods or services that is required for the conduct of a Federal program.

Recipients are required to submit quarterly reports to the Federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB). In certain circumstances, recipients may delegate reporting to subrecipients. If cities and towns receive Recovery Act funding directly from the Federal government they are a recipient. If they receive “pass through” money from a state agency they are a subrecipient. These reports will be posted on www.Recovery.gov.

The reporting timelines are tight and are as follows:

1 to 10 days after end of Quarter – Recipient and delegated subs enter draft data
11 to 21 days after end of Quarter – Recipient and sub review data, make corrections
22 to 29 days after end of Quarter – Federal agencies review data; recipients and subs make corrections if directed
30 days after end of Quarter – Recipient reports published on www.Recovery.gov

The OMB prepared a series of webinars to train Federal Agencies and recipients of Recovery Act funding on how to comply with their reporting responsibilities. This series – "Implementing Guidance for the Reports on Use of Funds Pursuant to the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009" – is divided into 7 parts and can be found at www.whitehouse.gov/Recovery/WebinarTrainingMaterials/.

More information about Recovery Act funding and accountability measures, including all official guidance issued by the state to implement the Recovery Act, is now available at Recovery.wa.gov. In addition, continue to use the AWC website for the latest information on the Recovery Act, including training opportunities.

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