PSATS Guidance

Fact Sheet: PSATS American Rescue Plan Fact Sheet (Updated January 2024) provides guidance to townships about their options under U.S. Treasury’s Final Rule and the 2023 Interim Final Rule. Remember, townships can use ARP funds for nearly any normal township expenses (with the exception of pension fund liability and debt) under the Standard Allowance – Revenue Replacement category. The funds can be applied to payroll, road and bridge projects, parks, administration expenses, insurance premiums, and much more. While the debt ceiling is not impacting the timeframe, ARP funds needed to be obligated by December 31, 2024, which means they must have been spent, under contract, or under purchase order by that date.

Webinar: On March 26, 2024, PSATS hosted a webinar to provide an overview of the ARP Funds, demonstrate how to access Treasury’s Reporting and Compliance Portal, and submit the 2024 Project and Expenditure Report. Townships can view a recording of the webinar (passcode: uHq!^9J^) or the download the presentation slides. Please note that there were a few updates to the portal that we did not address in our webinar presentation:

• On the project overview screen, a Yes/No dropdown will ask “have revenue replacement funds been allocated to government services and reflected in the below projects?” – as a reminder, revenue replacement with the standard allowance election is the most flexible option and all townships are recommended to create projects in this spending category.
• There are two Yes/No questions on the certification screen regarding Federal Audit Clearinghouse and Alternative Compliance Examination Engagement. These questions would only potentially be answered as Yes if your township spent $750,000 or more in federal funds in the most recent fiscal year and would require additional steps. If your township has not spend $750,000 or more in federal funds in the most recent fiscal year, both answers will be No.

PSATS will provide a walkthrough webinar for the next Project and Expenditure Repot in early April, 2025. Stay tuned for updates!

Portal Access: Township officials may access the U.S. Treasury’s portal website at https://portal.treasury.gov/compliance using their login.gov account credentials (the same login and password as SAM.gov). Townships using an id.me account can access U.S. Treasury’s portal website at https://portal.treasury.gov/cares.

If you are new to your township and planning to submit the Project & Expenditure Report, you will need to create a login.gov account and be added to Treasury’s reporting portal. If the portal account administrator is still with your township, they can add users and assign roles from within Treasury’s portal, which can be accessed at the address above. 

If no one at the township has access to the portal, you need to contact Treasury as soon as possible to become an administrator to file the ARPA report by emailing SLFRP@Treasury.gov and COVIDITrelief@Treasury.gov. Be sure to provide as much information as possible, including the email address you’re using to sign in, township, county, state, UEI number, and NEU number. Please be patient and know that it could take several weeks before you hear back!

Reporting

Award recipients are required to continue to submit annual Project and Expenditure Reports, even if all funds have been spent. Treasury stated that they will provide closeout instructions with additional information on how to complete and provide final reports.

Project and Expenditure Report: All award recipients are required to file a Project and Expenditure Report each year by April 30. Reports cover activity from April 1 of the prior year through March 31 of the current year.

Report Guidance: Below are links to resources related to the annual report. Please note that these documents refer to non-entitlement units, which are municipalities with populations of less than 50,000. Most townships are classified as non-entitlement units or NEUs. 

• Townships may access the U.S. Treasury’s portal website at https://portal.treasury.gov/compliance using your login.gov account credentials. This is the same login and password as your SAM.gov account and the Federal CDL Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse.
• Login.gov User’s Guide: U.S. Treasury document showing how to login to your account and take the first steps to link your account. Please note that you need to use the very first link to login to the portal via login.gov.
• Account Validation Guide: U.S. Treasury document to explain the process for new users accessing Treasury’s portal. Please note, this process requires the account ID sent via email in March 2023 to the individual Treasury currently has on file.
• PSATS quick guide (Updated April 2023) PSATS short guide on How to File Project and Expenditure Report provides step by step instructions to townships on completing the report, including electing the standard allowance.

SAM.gov Registration

SAM.gov Renewal: SAM.gov registration is required for American Rescue Plan funds as well as other federal funding (including disaster aid). Renewals must be completed each year on the SAM.gov website. If you have any questions, concerns, or issues while renewing your SAM registration, please contact the Federal Service Desk at 866-606-8220.

Incorporation Information: SAM.gov registration now requires municipalities to provide written documentation of their incorporation in order to register, renew, and apply for feral grants. The Pennsylvania State Archives has a webpage dedicated to incorporation dates and official names for all Pennsylvania municipalities organized by County. The Archives office has also prepared a guide to help municipalities to locate their incorporation documents or approved documentation.

Links to Resources

Treasury Links: Treasury has compiled many documents about the final rule and how it applies. While these documents are all available on Treasury’s website, they are not all easy to find. 

• FAQs: (Updated March 29, 2024) Frequently Asked Questions and Answers provided by U.S. Treasury explaining the allowable expenses and reporting.
• SLFRF Compliance and Reporting Guidance: (Updated December 2024) Provides an overview of reporting requirements for all award recipients and compliance requirements under each project category. 
• Project and Expenditure Report User Guide: (Updated April 2023) U.S. Treasury document providing a detailed explanation of the Project and Expenditure Report. Note that some of these provisions only apply to states and larger entities, not townships.