DETROIT (Michigan News Source) – When the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was passed in March 2021, then President Joe Biden said it would give Americans impacted by government shutdowns “a fighting chance.”
Democratic House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said at the time it provided “desperately needed relief to the American people.”
But ARPA has long strayed from that original vision. Instead, billions have been spent on routine government operations that have no connection to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Michigan News Source has highlighted many of these non-COVID-19 related projects funded by federal pandemic relief money.
The most recent was approved by the Detroit City Council. The city of Detroit will spend $1.58 million on installing fiber cable between the Detroit Public Safety Headquarters and the Lyndon Data Center.
Previously, the city had approved ARPA money to be used to replace generators for 11 city of Detroit Radio Tower locations and install a new backup generator at the Lyndon Data Center.