In March of 2021, a year into the COVID pandemic, the city of Baltimore was one of hundreds of cities and municipalities across the country who received a chunk of $65.1 billion dollars in American Rescue Plan grants. Baltimore’s take was $641 million dollars, which Mayor Brandon Scott disbursed to city agencies, quasi-governmental organizations and non-profit organizations who are charged with improving housing, infrastructure, violence prevention and a host of other areas.
Shamiah Kerney is the city's Chief Recovery Officer in the Mayor's Office of Recovery Programs. She was hired to oversee the granting process and to make sure that the entities that received funding spent the federal dollars in accordance with the established regulations.
By June of this year, 45% of ARPA funds have been spent. However, $68 million of the $641 million allocated to various groups was rescinded because certain grantees were not able to meet the deadlines for implementing their programs.
