Promoting Equitable Outcomes

El Paso County is committed to promoting equitable outcomes with ARPA funds. Given the statutorily mandated division of responsibilities between state, county, and city governments within Colorado, the areas in which the county can impact equitable outcomes most are through economic development, the Pikes Peak Workforce Center, and Public Health. Those entities can operate within any area municipality without impacting that jurisdiction’s plans for their direct ARPA funding. Other county services, such as stormwater, water projects, and broadband infrastructure, will operate in areas where little or no direct ARPA funds were directly awarded to a recipient. There are no qualified census tracts in unincorporated El Paso County, but this division of labor allows each citizen to receive a benefit from these funds.

As noted above, the most diverse areas of El Paso County are concentrated within a jurisdiction that received direct ARPA funds.