(Editor’s Note: This is the third in a four-part series looking at promises President Joe Biden committed to for his first 100 days in office, and how they’ve affected Davis County thus far. Day 100 was April 28.)

On the day he was inaugurated, President Joe Biden set out an ambitious agenda for programs he wanted to introduce and things he wanted to accomplish in his first 100 days in office. For decades, political observers and the media have focused on what a president can accomplish in their first three months in office. Americans have come to expect the initial evaluation of a president by comparing what they pledge and what they actually do.

Part of President Biden’s American Rescue Plan was to allocate federal dollars to cities, counties and states as part of a restructuring of infrastructure and reset for other community needs. It passed the House and Senate and was signed into law by the president on March 11.

The $1.9 trillion bill was encouraged to speed up the country’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic by offering relief on the economy, public health, state and local government programs, and to individuals and businesses. There were multiple layers to the way these funds would be sent to jurisdictions, and part of the bill extended unemployment benefits, offered stimulus checks for up to $1,400 per individual (most of those have already been received by the populace), expanded tax credits for many with children, and assisted small businesses and local health providers, particularly those in rural areas.

So what does that all mean for Davis County? Projected numbers are in, but not the cash. Yet.

As the graph accompanying this story shows, Davis County cities could get more than $41.6 million from ARP allocations. The state as a whole would garner $469 million-plus. What is yet to be determined is when that money would come to the Beehive State, and how it might be used.

“We understand it would come in two tranches (parts),” said Gary Hill, Bountiful city manager. Bountiful is projected to receive almost $5 million. “That’s how CARES Act funding came. Half of it could come in the next two to three months, and the other half is still subject to any changes that Congress or the administration might make. There’s no guarantee when that would come or how much it would be.”

The CARES Act, which stood for Coronavirus Response and Consolidated Appropriation Act, was passed and signed into law under the administration of former President Donald Trump in March of 2020. It was designed to provide economic assistance for American workers, families, small businesses and industries. Most Americans also received stimulus checks under the act.

Hill said one of the challenges facing all ARP recipients is that “we don’t have any guidance yet on what we can spend it on. It will probably be much like the CARES Act for direct expenditures related to the virus, plus some infrastructure needs, water, sewer or broadband, but the CARES Act had no requirement for how funds were to be shared. Some states withheld those funds from certain cities, though that didn’t happen in Utah. This time states can’t hold it back. We’ve been told we will all get some additional guidance from the Treasury Department by the end of May. Until we have that, we’re not making any assumptions on how it can be used.”

“Part of what needs to be figured out is what we can and should use these funds for,” said Bob Stevenson, Davis County Commission chair. “We need to know that as cities, counties and the state, this is a one-time thing. Whatever we’re doing needs to help the economy, so that over time the dollars we spend here will generate more dollars and the economy in the future. When you take one-time dollars and put them into projects with a continual cost, you run out of those one-time dollars and need to find new revenue to keep them going.”

He said the emphasis needs to be on infrastructure, broadband, and public utilities that can help attract economic growth and businesses to communities.

“It’s very important that we all work together to utilize the money for worthwhile projects,” he said. “Our quality of life here in Davis County is as good as anywhere in the state. We need to continue to enhance that in any way we can.”

And $41 million is probably a good place to start, once it arrives.