In mid-July 2025, societal media users circulated a rumor that Kerr County, an country deed hard by cardinal Texas' devastating flash floods, rejected $10 cardinal offered by erstwhile U.S. President Joe Biden to update its flood informing system.
Biden's medication did connection Kerr County astir $10 cardinal successful pandemic alleviation funds nether the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) successful 2021. However, portion section governments could usage those funds for flood infrastructure, the national authorities did not specifically earmark the wealth for that purpose. It could beryllium utilized for assorted purposes, specified arsenic pandemic-related authorities services and wage for indispensable workers.
Kerr County residents had mixed reactions to the offered funds. While the county's commissioners faced unit to cull the national money, they yet accepted it and utilized astir of it to physique a caller archetypal responder exigency vigor strategy for the sheriff's department.
Although reputable reports bespeak region officials, for years, discussed and attempted to upgrade their flood informing system, it remained unclear, arsenic of this writing, wherefore Kerr County did not usage immoderate of the national funds to amended flood infrastructure. Harley Belew, a commissioner astatine the time, said via email that the vigor strategy the region bought with ARPA funds was utilized "to afloat effect" during the flooding.
After destructive flash floods swept done cardinal Texas successful 2025, section officials came nether scrutiny from radical nationwide searching for reasons wherefore the catastrophe killed so galore people.
One rumor pointed fingers astatine officials from the conservative Kerr County, 1 of the hardest-hit areas on the Guadalupe River, for allegedly rejecting oregon diverting wealth sent by erstwhile U.S. President Joe Biden meant to update the county's flood informing systems. The allegation dispersed connected Instagram, Facebook, X, Threads and Bluesky.
"Kerr County was virtually fixed $10 cardinal by the Biden medication to assistance upgrade their flood informing system, and they said no," an Instagram idiosyncratic claimed successful 1 popular video. "Instead, you cognize what Kerr County did? They called it a 'communist agenda' and rerouted the wealth to the sheriff's department."
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DL--LE8yxej/?igsh=MWV1ZjBoYmt3OTRscQ%3D%3D
But this assertion needs context. While the Biden medication did assistance Kerr County $10.2 cardinal successful 2021, the national authorities outlined assorted purposes for the money, specified arsenic wage for indispensable workers and assistance for businesses affected by the pandemic. The wealth could be utilized for earthy disaster-related infrastructure, specified arsenic updates to flood informing systems, but it did not have to beryllium spent that way. The funds originated from the American Rescue Plan Act, oregon ARPA, which Congress passed to enactment section governments impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I've been getting decease threats, tin you imagine? And cursing america for decisions we didn't get a accidental to make," 1 Kerr County commissioner, Rich Paces, said astatine a July 14, 2025, meeting (see 24:03). "Joe Biden didn't springiness america $10 cardinal for a flood informing system. Now, that's conscionable mendacious information. We did get 10 cardinal successful ARPA funds, OK, and we utilized it for a vigor strategy to assistance with exigency response."
While Kerr County residents were divided connected whether to judge the ARPA money, the region did yet judge the funds and spent astir of it connected gathering a caller exigency effect vigor strategy for the sheriff's department.
In different words, officials did not walk ARPA dollars connected upgrading the county's outdated flood informing system. While existent Kerr County commissioners did not instantly respond to an enquiry asking astir this, a commissioner from 2021, Harley Belew, said replacing the "antiquated" strategy "provided amended sum betwixt Kerr County officers and dispatch."
"The caller strategy besides enabled Kerr County Deputies to pass with different authorities and section instrumentality enforcement agencies during emergencies," Belew wrote successful an email. "Those radios person been utilized to afloat effect during this disaster."
How Kerr County could person spent ARPA funds
The ARPA gave section governments escaped guidelines for what to usage the funds on. Those guidelines, taken straight from the legislation, tin beryllium seen beneath (emphasis ours):
(Sec. 9901) This conception provides backing to states, territories, and tribal governments to mitigate the fiscal effects stemming from the COVID-19 nationalist wellness emergency.
A state, territory, oregon tribal authorities shall usage the funds to screen costs incurred by December 31, 2024, to
respond to the COVID-19 exigency oregon its antagonistic economical impacts, including assistance to households, tiny businesses, and nonprofits oregon assistance to impacted industries specified arsenic tourism, travel, and hospitality;
provide premium wage to indispensable workers oregon supply grants to employers of indispensable workers during the COVID-19 emergency;
provide authorities services to the grade of the simplification successful gross of specified state, territory, oregon tribal authorities owed to the COVID-19 emergency; or
make indispensable investments successful water, sewer, oregon broadband infrastructure.
The conception prohibits (1) the usage of funds to trim oregon hold the imposition of a taxation oregon taxation increase, oregon (2) deposit of the funds into a pension fund.
Page 59 of this Treasury Department document showed the national authorities did, successful fact, connection Kerr County $10.2 cardinal successful ARPA funds.
Other section governments utilized ARPA funds for storm-related infrastructure. Corpus Christi, Texas, for example, utilized $15 cardinal successful ARPA wealth to "rehabilitate and/or regenerate aging tempest h2o infrastructure" (Page 8).
But Kerr County did not walk immoderate of its ARPA dollars connected tempest oregon water-related infrastructure, but for astir $116,000 utilized for an "ice tempest closure," according to a Kerr County budget workshop successful July 2024. It's unclear how, exactly, those funds were utilized (see 2:28:34).
Local residents had mixed absorption to ARPA offer
When the Biden medication offered the ARPA wealth to the county, immoderate radical urged officials to cull it entirely. In a survey of 181 residents, astir 41% of respondents said they wanted to "send the wealth back." In a Nov. 22, 2021, meeting, residents cited fears of national overreach and imaginable "strings attached" — specified arsenic imaginable vaccine mandates — arsenic reasons to cull the $10.2 million. At slightest 1 nonmigratory referred to "these people" — presumably the Biden medication — arsenic "communist," arsenic referenced successful the above-mentioned Instagram post. (For the record, thing successful ARPA mandates COVID-19 vaccines.)
The county's commissioners yet voted to judge the funds, contempt "heavy pressure, sometimes bordering threatening behavior, from ultra-conservative activists," according to a section newspaper, Kerr County Lead.
Of the $10.2 million, Kerr County spent $7 cardinal connected a caller archetypal responder exigency vigor for the sheriff's section and different $1.1 cardinal connected hiring exigency responders. The region besides spent funds connected a new walkway, different hires and administrative needs similar updated bundle (see a elaborate breakdown at 2:27:34).
Why didn't Kerr County usage ARPA dollars to upgrade flood alert system?
Multiple reputable news outlets, including NBC News, reported that earlier 2021, Kerr County officials repeatedly discussed upgrading its flood informing systems and sought backing from the state, lone to beryllium rebuffed. One rejected connection reportedly asked Texas for conscionable nether $1 cardinal to update the flood informing system.
According to Kerr County's adopted 2024-25 budget, officials spent $9,500 connected its flood informing strategy from fund twelvemonth 2020 to 2024 (Page 98).
However, arsenic of this writing, Kerr County has not provided an mentation arsenic to wherefore it did not usage ARPA wealth to money its much-needed alert system.
The Texas Tribune reported connected July 10 that "it's not wide if residents oregon the commissioners understood astatine the clip they could person applied the [ARPA] funds to a informing system," fixed that the Kerr County commissioners successful complaint astatine the clip did not respond to the paper's requests for interviews. The commissioners, but for Belew, besides did not instantly respond to Snopes. Belew's aforementioned effect did not straight code whether commissioners knew they could usage the funds for a informing system, contempt being asked.
A Nov. 4, 2021, workshop presentation connected ARPA funds by Kerr County's assistance head astatine the time, Rosa Lavender, noted the wealth could beryllium utilized connected "necessary investments to amended entree to cleanable drinking water, stormwater infrastructure, and to grow entree to broadband internet" (Slide 9). At slightest a twelve residents attended the workshop, based connected minutes from a commissioner gathering connected Nov. 22, 2021. Therefore, astatine slightest immoderate residents and officials knew the wealth could beryllium utilized connected stormwater infrastructure.
To summarize: Kerr County did not cull $10 cardinal from the Biden medication to update its flood informing system, specifically. Rather, the erstwhile statesmanlike medication issued the money, pandemic alleviation funding, to usage connected assorted things, including, but not constricted to, stormwater infrastructure. So, portion the region could person utilized the national dollars to upgrade the flood informing system, it spent astir of it connected an exigency responder vigor strategy for the sheriff's department. It remained unclear arsenic of this penning wherefore Kerr County did not usage the funds specifically for its flood informing system.
Sources:
"Allocations and Payments." U.S. Department of the Treasury, 11 June 2024, home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/coronavirus/assistance-for-state-local-and-tribal-governments/state-and-local-fiscal-recovery-funds/allocations-and-payments. Accessed 15 July 2025.
Amestoy, Louis. "BREAKING: Kerr County Commissioners Hold Fast connected Federal COVID-19 Funds." The Kerr County Lead, 24 Jan. 2022, kerrcountylead.com/breaking-kerr-county-commissioners-hold-fast-on-federal-covid-19-funds/. Accessed 15 July 2025.
City of Corpus Christi -Recovery Plan. https://home.treasury.gov, 31 Aug. 2021, home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/Corpus-Christi_2021-Recovery-Plan_SLT-0655.pdf. Accessed 15 July 2025.
Flavelle, Christopher, et al. "Kerr County Repeatedly Sought Help with Flood Risk. Texas Said No." Archive.ph, The New York Times, 10 July 2025, archive.ph/wWEER. Accessed 15 July 2025.
Gorman, Steve. "Texas Flood Death Toll Rises to 131 arsenic New Storms Loom." Reuters, 15 July 2025, www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/texas-flood-death-toll-rises-131-new-storms-loom-2025-07-14/. Accessed 15 July 2025.
"H.R.1319 - 117th Congress (2021-2022): American Rescue Plan Act of 2021." Www.congress.gov, 2 Mar. 2021, www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/1319. Accessed 15 July 2025.
Jacoby, Kenny. "Texas County Where Campers Died Was Denied Money to Boost Warning Systems." USA TODAY, 7 July 2025, www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/07/07/texas-flooding-kerr-county-flood-warning-money-denial/84499153007/. Accessed 15 July 2025.
KERR COUNTY AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT (ARPA) PROJECT WORKSHOP. 4 Nov. 2021, www.co.kerr.tx.us/arpa/Kerr_Workshop_Presentation.pdf. Accessed 15 July 2025.
"Kerr County Commissioners' Court Budget Workshop, July 1, 2024." Www.youtube.com, 1 July 2024, www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdMk8bBSYbY. Accessed 15 July 2025.
"KERR COUNTY COMMISSIONERS' COURT Regular Session Monday, November 22, 2021." Kerr.tx.us, 22 Nov. 2021, legacy.co.kerr.tx.us/commcrt/minutes/2021/112221(CC).txt. Accessed 15 July 2025.
"Kerr County Commissioners Court Session, July 14, 2025." Www.youtube.com, 14 July 2025, www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7vJO9Xs3h8. Accessed 15 July 2025.
KERR COUNTY, TEXAS 2024-2025 ADOPTED BUDGET . Sept. 24AD, legacy.co.kerr.tx.us/notices/docs/2024-08-30--KerrCounty-FY2024-25AdoptedBudget.pdf. Accessed 15 July 2025.
Langford, Terri, and Dan Keemahill. "Why Kerr County Balked connected a New Flood Warning System." The Texas Tribune, 10 July 2025, www.texastribune.org/2025/07/10/texas-kerr-county-commissioners-flooding-warning/. Accessed 15 July 2025.
Lavender, Rosa. "County Provides ARPA Fund Update." Hccommunityjournal.com, 14 July 2024, www.hccommunityjournal.com/article_fd3f3e9c-3eb8-11ef-9bb2-b32dd8fc6b3d.html. Accessed 15 July 2025.
Sommer, Lauren. "Kerr County Struggled to Fund Flood Warnings. Under Trump, It's Getting Even Harder." NPR, 10 July 2025, www.npr.org/2025/07/10/nx-s1-5461091/texas-flooding-warning-system-fema. Accessed 15 July 2025.
"Survey Results." Https://Www.co.kerr.tx.us, www.co.kerr.tx.us/arpa/Community_Survey_Results.pdf.
"Veterans' Pathway Open to Pedestrians Following Friday Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony." Welcome to Kerr County | Kerrville, TX, kerrcountytx.gov/blog/veterans-pathway-open-to-pedestrians-following-friday-ribbon-cutting-ceremony#gsc.tab=0. Accessed 15 July 2025.
Willard, Keenan. "Donations Pour into Kerr County arsenic Officials Say State Will Improve Flood Safety." NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth, 9 July 2025, www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/donations-pour-into-kerr-county-as-officials-say-state-will-improve-flood-safety/3881865/. Accessed 15 July 2025.
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