As part of the ongoing health and economic recovery effort from the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Congress has passed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Included in the stimulus package are allocations of funds for state and local governments to support these recovery efforts. Here’s an overview of what that means.

Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds

The Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds allocations include:

• $350 billion to be used for responding to the COVID-19 public health emergency, to offset revenue losses, fuel economic recovery, and to provide premium pay for essential workers
• $10 billion in a new Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund for critical capital projects directly enabling work, education, and health monitoring, including remote options
• $2 billion in a county and Tribal assistance fund to make payments to eligible revenue-sharing counties and Tribes

This means that these funds can be used in multiple ways to support local economic recovery efforts, which could range from securing PPE for future emergency response readiness to preparing for broadband infrastructure improvement projects, or new safety equipment that may be needed across public works, water and sewer departments, fire and police departments, and more.

This funding remains available through December 31, 2024. Local governments will receive funds in two phases – the first half 60 days after enactment, and the second half one year later.

From the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, MSA has been and continues to be prepared to provide PPE, training, and resources to help keep essential workers serving essential industries safe.

MSA lines of products eligible for this funding include:

• Air-Purifying Respirators: Elastomeric half-mask respirators have many benefits, including lower total cost of ownership, reduction in storage space, and flexibility in protection. Solutions include the new Advantage 900, which is the first NIOSH-approved elastomeric respirator with both a speaking diaphragm and no exhalation valve and Optimair® TL PAPR , which is available for discounted pricing and ready for immediate delivery.
• Gas Detection: Includes area monitoring, multigas detectors, and web-based software to support connected worksites and data-driven insights to help improve safety programs over time.
• Fall Protection: Solutions range from full-body harnesses designed with comfort and cooling in mind to self-retracting lifelines and personal fall limiters for working at heights safely.
• G1 SCBA: NFPA 2018 Edition approved, the MSA G1 SCBA provides the revolutionary safety capabilities of today with the ability to be seamlessly updated as technology changes in the future. Its technology-based platform allows users to add electronic capabilities quickly and easily via simple software updates, not added-on hardware.

Read more about the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 here.