In collaboration with The Kresge Foundation, the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) released a new report, “Promoting Equity through ARPA Implementation,” which documents 20 city case studies and details how mayors are using State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to invest in underserved populations and address the disproportionate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on low and moderate-income people and communities of color.

In Boston, for example, the city targeted services and resources to disproportionately impacted communities, implementing a Health Equity Task Force to tackle public health disparities and Fare Free Bus Pilot to help all residents access public transit. Kansas City used a community engagement process to inform its allocation of ARPA funds, which included establishing a Housing Trust Fund to ensure affordable housing for all families and the Rebuild KC program to enable community members to direct the implementation of neighborhood-based projects. 

“Without centering equity explicitly, cities can easily exacerbate disparities,” said report co-author Lourdes Germán, a senior advisor to the Social Investment Practice and American Cities Program at Kresge. “Partnering with community, especially deeply rooted nonprofits, is a crucial way cities can position ARPA work for success, and these case studies from equity-minded cities provide blueprints for other municipalities to learn from and emulate.”