Spirit Lake rejects ARPA money

SPIRIT LAKE — The Spirit Lake City Council unanimously turned down more than half a million dollars in American Rescue Plan Act money at a special meeting.

Councilmembers expressed concerns about terms and conditions said to be connected with the funds, having too many questions and doubts. They said it was difficult to understand all the stipulations outlined in more than 1,000 pages.

They went against the advice of attorney Chris Gabbert, who represents the city and recommended it accept the $544,838.

He said he has reviewed ARPA conditions.

“I don’t have concerns about strings being attached to these funds,” he said.

Gabbert said he has spoken to other officials about the ARPA money. He noted the cities of Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls accepted the funds, as did Kootenai County.

“A lot of these fears are unsupported,” he said during an April 19 special meeting at Spirit Lake City Hall.

Mayor Jeremy Cowperthwaite said the City Council could delay a decision to look further into the issue, but councilmembers wanted to act.

“I’d like to make a decision tonight,” said Councilman Gary Ventress. “That’s what we’re here for. That’s what I’m here for.”

Councilman Darrell Woods said he also wanted to make a decision.

“We called a special session for this,” he said, and followed that by making a motion to not accept the ARPA money.

Ventress seconded the motion, with Councilmembers Mark Privitt and Shanna Swalander also voting to turn down the money.

The American Rescue Plan Act was passed by the Biden Administration in March 2021. The $1.9 trillion stimulus was intended to alleviate economic strain caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bonner County resident Kendra Martin gave about a 30-minute presentation to the Spirit Lake Council on ARPA money.

She said there are many legal entanglements and political agendas involved. She spoke of being required to provide routing numbers, account numbers and banking institutions, information that could then be used to freeze accounts. She said recipients have to agree to provide access to electronic filings and records.

Martin, who also spoke to Bonner County commissioners on this issue, urged the council to thoroughly read all documents associated with the APRA money. She said there are requirements that come with using the money, and new rules coming up on April 30.

She said accepting the money would be like signing a contract without knowing what you’re getting into and that the government doesn’t just give money away without conditions.

“It’s ambiguous. It’s not, 'Just do this, and you’re good,'" Martin said.

Gabbert disagreed. He said that from a legal perspective, he has no qualms accepting the funds.

He said the city has pending wastewater and sewer improvements that are unfunded and need to be addressed. The money could be used for those projects, Gabbert said.

He doubts there would be any problems down the road and vowed to fight for the city if there were.

“For the federal government to come out here and pick a fight, they would have a tough row to hoe, so to speak,” he said.

He said the federal government "can’t give you money and then retroactively impose conditions. I don’t see it as a well-founded concern.”

Ventress, however, said what he read in the paperwork outlining ARPA had contradictions.

“How am I supposed to understand this, at over 1,000 pages?” he asked.

Woods said he had too many questions even after reading ARPA information.

“I just know our federal government and I don’t have a lot of faith in them anymore,” Woods said.

Gabbert cautioned the council “not to be jumping at unknown strings, because you do have fiscal responsibility to the citizens of this city as well.

"If you're going to have fears and suspicions of something coming down the pike, I’m here to tell you those fears are unfounded and I will defend it,” he said.