TODAY is Last Day to Complete Old Lyme ARPA Committee’s Survey on Pandemic Impacts, Results Will Help Determine Federal Allocation of $2.16M to Town

Town Hall illustration by Old Lyme resident Edie Twining.

Survey Results Will be Used to Help Determine Allocation of $2.162M in Federal Funds by the Town

OLD LYME — Old Lyme residents, business owners, and organization leaders are encouraged to take the Old Lyme Pandemic Recovery Survey to share how the COVID-19 pandemic affected their family or organization. The survey closes Jan. 7, 2022.

Conducted by the Town’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Committee, the survey is expected to give the ARPA Committee valuable insight into what households, businesses, and nonprofits experienced during the pandemic and how they are coping 22 months later.

The survey results will inform the Committee’s recommendations to the Old Lyme Board of Selectmen in 2022. The Town was allocated $2.162 million by the Federal Government to be allocated in pandemic recovery. Strict adherence to Federal spending guidelines will be followed.

The survey is not an application for funds, but rather data gathering on the pandemic’s effects on Old Lyme. Town projects or programs will be determined after the survey, and applications for assistance will be sought following the set guidelines.

The survey can be found at OldLymeSurvey.com and print copies will be available at the Town Hall reception desk beginning Tuesday, Dec. 14. The committee asks that one survey is filled out per household or organization. Responses are anonymous unless the survey taker chooses to share their contact information at the end.

The Federal guidelines relating to how Old Lyme and other municipalities may use the Federal funds are as follows:

Support public health expenditures, e.g., funding COVID-19 mitigation efforts, medical expenses, behavioral healthcare, and certain public health and safety staff
Address negative economic impacts caused by the public health emergency, including economic harms to workers, households, small businesses, impacted industries, and the public sector
Replace lost public sector revenue, using this funding to provide government services to the extent of the reduction in revenue experienced due to the pandemic
Provide premium pay for essential workers, offering additional support to those who have and will bear the greatest health risks because of their service in critical infrastructure sectors
Invest in water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure, making necessary investments to improve access to clean drinking water, support vital wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, and to expand access to broadband internet.

To learn more about the ARPA Committee, visit https://www.oldlyme-ct.gov/american-rescue-plan-committee