Authority approves PPA amendment to allow early access to unused federal funds

The Metro Flood Diversion Authority Finance Committee on April 22 approved Amendment No. 2 to the Project Partnership Agreement (PPA) with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that will allow non‑federal project sponsors earlier access to unused federal funds.

John Shockley told the committee that under the existing PPA the Corps would not return unused federal funds to non‑federal sponsors until final administrative closeout, which he said could be as late as 2030. "Through negotiations with the Corps leadership and the Corps in St. Paul, the Corps has agreed that we can access some of those funds early," Shockley said. He described the amendment as a stepwise process: each year the Corps and the Authority will determine amounts that remain unused and identify funds to return to the Authority.

A committee member moved to approve the amendment as outlined by Shockley; the motion was seconded and approved by roll call. The committee record shows affirmative roll‑call responses from member jurisdictions and the chair declared the motion passed.

The committee and staff characterized the amendment as an administrative and cash‑flow improvement rather than a change to project scope. The amendment does not represent a single, final payment — Shockley said additional distributions will be determined annually as the Corps completes project closeouts.

Next steps: staff will work with Corps officials on the mechanics and timing for the first partial distribution and return to the committee with any required paperwork or accounting steps.