As the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds come to an end, municipalities across the country face a tough challenge: how to maintain essential services like plan reviews, building inspections, and code enforcement without the financial cushion that federal support provided.
These funds allowed cities to expand services and meet growing demands without overstretching their budgets. Now, as that funding fades, it’s crucial for local governments to find efficient, cost-effective ways to keep serving their communities at a high level.
While scaling back services or internalizing them may appear to be a practical solution, the cost of doing nothing can be far more significant than anticipated. Service disruptions can frustrate residents and businesses, stalling development projects and creating bottlenecks that hurt local economies.
With many municipalities already under pressure to deliver results, it’s critical to make smart decisions that avoid backlash from both the public and city stakeholders.
Solving labor shortages and pension challenges
Recruiting full-time staff for public works or building departments might seem like a logical choice, but it can introduce new complications. With ongoing labor shortages in key sectors, finding skilled professionals who are ready to deliver essential services like inspections and code compliance can be a major challenge.
Also, the long-term costs associated with hiring, such as salaries, benefits, and pension obligations, can weigh heavily on municipal budgets. In recent years, municipalities have seen a substantial increase in their pension costs, which strain already tight budgets.
By working with an experienced provider like SAFEbuilt, cities gain immediate access to a team of professionals without the additional financial burdens that come with direct employment. You can meet current needs quickly and efficiently without facing long-term costs tied to staffing and retirement obligations.
Outsourcing also reduces liability risks, as service providers manage staffing, training, and compliance, ensuring consistent performance that protects public safety and mitigates legal exposure.
Resident expectations are higher than ever
When communities experience improved services — like faster inspections or streamlined approvals — they expect that level of performance to continue. A sudden return to slower, less efficient processes isn’t just inconvenient; it can spark frustration among residents and local businesses.
Dissatisfied residents often express their concerns in public forums, on social media, or during council meetings, eroding trust in government leadership. Maintaining partnerships with trusted providers like SAFEbuilt helps prevent backlash by delivering uninterrupted services that align with residents' heightened expectations.
Flexibility to respond to changing demands
Municipal workloads are rarely consistent. A surge in new development projects may require fast, high-capacity services, while quieter periods may leave city staff underutilized. When cities take on full-time employees to meet peak demand, they often face inefficiencies during slow periods or struggle to manage the workload when demand spikes.
Engaging with a service provider that offers scalable solutions allows municipalities to adapt to these fluctuations. Whether you need a quick expansion of services or a steady, reliable partner during slower times, SAFEbuilt’s flexibility ensures your city is never overstaffed or under-resourced.
The more affordable path: avoiding crisis costs and legal risks
While some cities may hesitate to continue outsourcing without ARPA funding, bringing services fully in-house often leads to hidden expenses. Hiring, training, certifications, and pension liabilities add up quickly, limiting the city’s ability to invest in other priorities. In contrast, outsourcing allows cities to control costs and avoid unpredictable financial commitments while still delivering high-quality services.
Beyond financial considerations, the risks of service disruptions can be enormous. Missed inspections or delayed code enforcement compromise public safety, exposing cities to liability risks and expensive remediation efforts. A proactive partner like SAFEbuilt ensures seamless operations, even during staff transitions or budget shortfalls. Keeping services running smoothly mitigates potential crises that could strain municipal budgets even further.
Maintaining residents’ confidence in city services
A key consideration for any city thinking about transitioning services in-house is the confidence of its residents. Many municipalities faced severe backlogs, delays, and inefficiencies before contracting with external providers like SAFEbuilt, which led to frustration among residents and businesses.
After partnering with a service provider, residents have grown accustomed to smoother processes with faster turnaround times. Returning to an in-house approach could disrupt this progress and be a tough pill for many residents to swallow.
When residents have experienced high-quality services, maintaining that level of performance becomes not just an operational priority but a governance one. SAFEbuilt ensures your community continues receiving the service quality residents expect, keeping them satisfied and engaged.
Moving forward with confidence
As ARPA funding dwindles, municipalities need to make informed decisions about how to sustain essential services. Rather than taking on the burden of staffing in-house teams and all the complexities that come with it, city leaders can look to trusted service providers like SAFEbuilt for a more efficient, cost-effective solution.
These efficiencies allow cities to achieve more with fewer resources, empowering leaders to show constituents that public funds are being managed responsibly and effectively. As ARPA funding ends, municipalities need these kinds of results-driven partnerships to meet public expectations without overextending their budgets.
Whether you are looking to maintain current service levels or explore outsourcing for the first time, partnering with an experienced, flexible provider ensures that your city can continue delivering high-quality, reliable services without breaking the budget.
The path forward is clear: by partnering with professionals like SAFEbuilt, municipalities can confidently navigate the challenges ahead, ensuring their communities continue to thrive without financial strain.
