During the Senate Finance committee discussions on Tuesday, staff from the Legislative Budget Board (LBB) told members that the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding coming to the state will not impact the spending cap since the cap does not include federal funds. The legislature has not yet taken up targeted discussions on ARPA spending.
Although over $16 billion in federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act is available to the state, there are restrictions on how the funds can be appropriated. The Legislature cannot appropriate funds directly to private entities under the Texas Constitution Article 16 section 6; funds must be appropriated to state entities or established state accounts. Under authority provided by existing statute or via new legislation, this money may then be granted out for eligible projects and purposes. During this 3rd Called Special Session, the Legislature will only consider the $16.7 billion allocated by the federal government to the state, and will not include the amounts that have been allocated to cities and counties. HillCo Partners will continue to monitor the status of the federal dollars flowing into the state and provide updates as we continue through the 87th Third Called Special Session.