The Perfect Enemy | How federal COVID-19 relief funded Ohio police

Hundreds of millions of dollars were given to Ohio law enforcement agencies in response to the pandemic.

But only some of this federal relief went explicitly toward PPE and other health-related needs, according to a new Marshall Project report.

Driving the news: The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) gave local governments and police departments $350 billion to recover from COVID-19 — the largest infusion of federal funding in local governments in almost 40 years.

Why it matters: The president has used ARPA as a key talking point against right wing accusations that Democrats want to defund the police.

The big picture: Through a partnership with The Marshall Project, Axios found that much of this spending is categorized as “revenue replacement,” a “vague catch-all” allowing communities to recoup lost funding.

Less than 10% went to “public health.”

State of play: Ohio received over $10 billion in ARPA funding, split between the state and local governments.

Columbiana County, near the Pennsylvania border, is an example of a small government that’s used the relief funding for public health needs.
Facing an influx of crime and ill equipped for a deadly pandemic, the county purchased courthouse cleaning supplies, built jail pods for social distancing and installed a fridge to store vaccines for those incarcerated.

Elsewhere, much of the statewide law enforcement funding paid for salaries, bonuses, officer recruitment and new equipment ranging from police cruisers to weaponry.

Departments said these purchases were necessary to combat a rise in crime resulting from the pandemic.

Yes, but: Other examples of relief spending appear wholly unrelated to the pandemic.

Hamilton County is using $150,000 to help relocate a Cincinnati police firing range that has bothered residents for over 70 years.
Reynoldsburg police received $46,500 to expand their parking lot, while Painesville spent $3,300 on speed detector equipment.

DeWine opposed ARPA, champions its spending

In March 2021, Gov. Mike DeWine said he probably wouldn’t have supported the ARPA legislation.

Yes, but: DeWine has been front and center in championing police spending funded by the very same relief bill he once opposed.

What’s happening: Federal relief money is funneled through the state government, and the governor is taking full advantage.

DeWine’s office routinely issues press releases trumpeting projects he has “awarded” that are funded by ARPA.
In the latest example, Monday’s release titled “Governor DeWine Awards $1.67 Million for First Responder Wellness,” takes 775 words before the money’s origin is revealed.
Biden and Congress go unmentioned — the release states only that the ARPA funding was “dedicated” by DeWine and the GOP-led legislature.

Flashback: DeWine appeared with law enforcement officers at a press conference last December to announce a large chunk of ARPA police spending.

But the governor used the opportunity to bash Democrats as wanting to defund the police:

How federal COVID-19 relief funded Ohio police — Via Twitter

What they’re saying: The governor’s opposition to ARPA was due to inflationary concerns, spokesman Dan Tierney tells Axios.

The state is spending its share so that unused portions aren’t diverted to other Democratic-led states, he adds.
Tierney says the governor’s office is “transparent about [ARPA spending] in press releases to be sure the public knows these dollars are being properly spent.”