The City of Buffalo received $165,678,466 in Federal stimulus funds from the United States Department of Treasury. The $1.9 trillion-dollar American Rescue Plan of 2021 was signed by President Joseph Biden on March 14th, 2021.
The City of Buffalo is expected to receive approximately $331 million dollars over the next two years. The $165 million dollar is the first lump sum payment from the American Rescue Plan. The second payment will be received next year; all funds must be spent within the next four years. “The receipt of these funds is an important first step in remedying budget deficits incurred by the Coronavirus Pandemic. I will work with the Administration, the Buffalo Common Council, and Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority (BFSA) to develop a public plan that adheres to the Federally mandated guidelines; my office will closely monitor the City of Buffalo’s requests for reimbursement to ensure the appropriate due diligence is followed by the City for compensation” stated Comptroller Barbara Miller-Williams.
In Fiscal Year 2021, the City budgeted $65 million dollars in Federal Disaster Relief funding; the American Rescue Plan meets the amount budgeted and provides surplus funding. The United Department of Treasury has instructed municipalities to use these funds to supplement revenue losses incurred by the pandemic.