State of Maryland Municipal Technical Assistance Program (MTAP) – Resources and Information
In June 2021, the Maryland Department of Budget and Management (DBM) launched a Technical Assistance Program to support Non-Entitlement Units (NEUs) of Local Government with their management and administration of their Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (CLFRF) awards. For more information on IIJA or IRA-specific technical assistance, please reference the IIJA and IRA Resources Page.
*NEW* Update to the Fund Mapping Service!
The MTAP team is providing a fund mapping service for municipalities to match projects or priorities with federal funding opportunities. The team is offering a NEW and more readily accessible way to participate - fill out the Fund Mapping Request Form and select "Yes" to question #6. A member of the MTAP team will schedule a meeting to gather required information needed to match programs with projects.
If you would like to fill out the Fund Mapping Request Form yourself and proceed to the next steps of the fund mapping process, select ‘No’ to question #6 and continue to answer the rest of the questions.
Have questions?
If you have any questions specific to how your community can use CLFRF or IIJA funding, please use the Question Portal to submit it to MTAP and someone from our team will follow up with specific guidance.
Check out MTAP's IIJA Resources Page here!
MTAP Services
Grants Management Resources
The MTAP Program provides Grants Management resources highlighting key requirements in the Uniform Guidance as well as other materials in support of municipalities managing federal funds. The resources developed by the MTAP team relate to federal grants management broadly including, but not limited to, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and ARPA CLFRF. Where applicable, Grants Management resources will also highlight ARPA-specific guidance.
Grant Summary Reports will provide comprehensive and concise analysis of open IIJA and IRA Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) with previous funding award cycles to provide key takeaways from awarded project types and funding amounts both nationally and within Maryland. Information includes relevant dates, award ranges, award types, and award trends based on project types and priority populations. These reports will be delivered as needed based on open NOFOs with previous funding cycles and applicability to Maryland NEUs.
Compliance Requirements Under the Revenue Loss Provision: This guide is designed to provide a high-level overview of Uniform Guidance requirements for expenditures made using ARPA CLFRF under the Revenue Loss Provision, sometimes referred to as Revenue Replacement or the Standard Allowance. Recipients are required to follow narrower sections of the Uniform Guidance under revenue loss, relative to other expenditure categories under ARPA CLFRF and other federal awards.
Navigating the Federal Grant Lifecycle: A Guide for Maryland Municipalities: This guide is designed to aid Maryland municipalities in understanding and engaging with federal grant programs. It outlines the three stages of the federal grant lifecycle, detailing the responsibilities of both funding agencies and applicants at each step. The guide covers aspects of the pre-award, award, and post-award phases for competitive (discretionary) and non-completive (formula) grants.
Reference Guide on Key Uniform Guidance Responsibilities and Supporting Resources: This document provides a high-level overview of each of the core elements of the Uniform Guidance with supporting publicly available resources. The content and resources included throughout this document provide information regarding eligible expenditures, budgetary flexibility, transparency measures, and accountability standards essential for using federal grant funds, ensuring responsible and effective use of these critical financial resources.
CLFRF Compliance Supplement: This document outlines applicability for Maryland NEUs of the April 2022 compliance supplemental document released by the U.S. Treasury.
Quick Reference Guide: This quick reference guide provides an overview for NEUs to distinguish between sub-recipients, beneficiaries, and contractors.
Office Hours Program
The State is hosting office hours to provide Maryland municipalities with an additional channel to ask questions, connect with other municipal governments, or submit feedback. The Maryland Municipal Technical Assistance team will be available during Office Hours to answer any questions you may have related to CLFRF or IIJA.
The next Office Hours session will be held on Tuesday, October 8th from 10:00am - 11:00am EST.
Join with Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/pvs-ismv-jeh
Or dial: (US) +1 617-675-4444 PIN: 538 506 455 6294#
More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/pvs-ismv-jeh?pin=5385064556294&hs=7
MTAP Fund Mapping Service
The MTAP team provides a fund mapping service that matches potential funding sources available through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) for your municipality’s priority project(s) or project concept(s). To participate in the service, please complete the Fund Mapping Request form.
For more information on the form, and our new streamlined option for completing it, please refer to the top of the landing page. If you have any questions on the Fund Mapping Service, email us at arpa.neuadmin@maryland.gov.
MTAP Question Portal
If you have any questions specific to how your community can use CLFRF or IIJA funding, please use the Question Portal to submit it to MTAP and someone from our team will follow up with specific guidance.
Webinar Program
The Municipal Technical Assistance Team hosts informational webinars on CLFRF and IIJA on a variety of topics. Please click here to access past webinar materials, including recordings and copies of the presentations. If you have suggestions for new topics, please use the question submission portal link to submit recommendations.
Updated FAQs on the Obligation Deadline
In May 2024, the U.S. Treasury released updated guidance for SLFRF recipients on the Obligation deadline. Please click here to review the new updates on the FAQ.
NEW Treasury User Guide for Reporting
The Treasury released a new reporting portal User Guide for the July reporting period for recipients who report quarterly. These changes may also impact municipalities required to report during the annual Project and Expenditure period on April 30, 2025. If your municipality has any questions related to the new guidance, please go to our Question Portal or email us at arpa.neuadmin@maryland.gov.
One Year Left to Spend
According to Treasury’s CLFRF guidance, CLFRF funds must be used for costs incurred on or after March 3, 2021. Further, funds must be obligated by December 31, 2024, and expended by December 31, 2026. Treasury defines this time during which recipients can expend CLFRF funds, as the “period of performance”. Municipalities should be certain to obligate all CLFRF funding during calendar year 2024, and prepare to spend the funds before the end of calendar year 2026.
Any funds not obligated by December 31, 2024 must be returned to Treasury and cannot be spent by your municipality. As a reminder, obligating funds means “orders placed for property and services, contracts and subawards made, and similar transactions that require payment." This means that no new projects can be created after the end of 2024.
Treasury’s ARPA CLFRF 2023 Obligations Interim Final Rule
The U.S. Treasury has recently released the “Obligation Interim Final Rule” (Obligation IFR) for the American Rescue Plan’s (ARP) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF). The Obligation IFR seeks to revise and clarify the definition of obligation as it relates to the implementation of SLFRF funding beyond the SLFRF Final Rule’s stated obligation deadline of December 31, 2024. Key changes include the following:
- Revised Definition of "Obligation": Treasury has revised the original definition of obligation set forth in 2 CFR 200 (the Uniform Guidance) to allow recipients additional flexibility in covering certain administrative expenditures beyond the obligation deadline.
- Obligation Deadline and Subrecipients: Subrecipients are not subject to the obligation deadline, but they are subject to the expenditure deadline. The obligation deadline applies to the recipient of SLFRF funds, and a cost is considered to have been incurred once a recipient enters a subaward or contract that obligates payment.
- Re-obligation of funds or Obligating Additional SLFRF Funds: Recipients cannot re-obligate funds or obligate additional funds that may become available after the December 31, 2024 obligation deadline. They are permitted, however, to amend or replace a contract or subaward beyond the obligation deadline under specific circumstances, outlined under "Amendment and Replacement of Contracts and Subawards".
Click here to view a copy of Treasury's State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds: Obligation IFR Quick Reference Guide. This document provides an overview of the Obligation Interim Final Rule for informational purposes and is intended as a brief summary.
If your municipality has unobligated CLFRF program funds, it should prepare to make those decisions during 2024. For more information, please see the National League of Cities’ recent article, ‘The ARPA Obligation Deadline is around the Corner’.
Additional United States Department of the Treasury Resources
