ARP Maintenance of Equity Requirements Update
New for 2021-22 is a Maintenance of Equity requirement for the ARP grants. This is different from the Maintenance of Effort requirement that is part of the Section 611/619 grants. There is a waiver process available for districts for 21-22 and 22-23. If you haven’t already requested the waiver, SED has extended the deadline until March 1, 2022, for the 21-22 school year. In general, if your district budgeted in the General Fund in 21-22 at least as much as you budgeted in 20-21, you should be eligible for the waiver.
To understand all the details about this new requirement, please read SED’s memo on the Frequently Asked Questions on Federal American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act Maintenance of Equity (MOEquity) Requirements and Process for Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) to Request MOEquity Exceptions. If you would like additional information, you can visit their website. These requirements apply to districts with more than 1,000 students which have more than one building, per grade level.
The certification form should be signed by the Superintendent and was initially due by February 11, 2022, but this deadline has been extended to March 1st for the 21-22 school year and October 1, 2022 for the 22-23 school year. If your district wishes to request an exception for the 2021-22 or 2021-22 and 2022-23 school year(s), please submit the certification form (the last page in the above document) to ChiefFinancialOfficer@nysed.gov by March 1, 2022. If no certification form is received by that date, your district will be required to meet the ARP MOEquity requirements for the 2021-22 school year.
