How Governments Can Make the Most of Federal COVID Relief

In a co-authored article for Governing, Faegre Drinker Consulting Principal Skip Stitt and Harvard Kennedy School’s Stephen Goldsmith discuss how state and local leaders can leverage the American Rescue Plan, which includes $350 billion in relatively unrestricted funding for governmental functions.

The authors recommend that city officials deciding how to use the federal relief funds deploy the money, with federal regulators’ approval, in ways that modernize public works while improving services for the long term.

They also share six examples of investments:

1. Enhancing data analytics capabilities
2. Increasing community responsiveness
3. Deploying cross-agency platforms
4. Modernizing infrastructure equipment
5. Expanding broadband access
6. Accelerating digital solutions