American families, workers, small business owners, farmers and schools across the country are already seeing the benefits from the American Rescue Plan less than a week since President Biden signed the relief legislation into law. From assisting restaurant owners in North Carolina to children in Michigan the American Rescue Plan is already helping Americans recover from the devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
CALIFORNIA:
Bay Area Community Colleges Will Receive Millions In Funding From The ARP To Benefit Their Students. “Bay Area community colleges are expected to receive tens of millions of dollars in relief money from the recently passed American Rescue Plan, Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, said Monday. The $1.9 trillion stimulus package, which President Joe Biden signed last week, provides some $40 billion to higher education institutions, about $2.2 billion of which will benefit California’s community colleges and their students. In the Bay Area, that will translate to eight-figure investments in post-secondary education, Eshoo said Monday during a briefing with community college officials. […] The Foothill-De Anza Community College District, based in Los Altos Hills, is expected to receive roughly $10.7 million, according to Eshoo, while Canada College will receive about $5.5 million, San Jose City College will receive $10.5 million and West Valley College will receive $8.3 million.” [NBC Bay Area, 3/15/21]
COLORADO:
Denver, Colorado: The American Rescue Plan Will Prevent Hundreds Of Thousands Of Colorado Workers Collecting Unemployment Benefits From Getting Cut Off. “True to its name, the American Rescue Plan has arrived in the nick of time to prevent hundreds of thousands of Colorado workers collecting unemployment benefits from getting cut off for the second time in three months. ‘It is our top priority to ensure that Coloradans experience a seamless transition,’ said Joe Barela, executive director of the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment during a news call Thursday. […] ‘Congress also listened to the people. They kept things simple. This allows it to be an easy lift,’ said Phil Spesshardt, the acting director of the state’s unemployment insurance division. […] The CDLE estimated that 280,000 people lost benefits in Colorado on Dec. 26 because Congress didn’t approve additional funding in time. Some recipients had to wait two months to have benefits restored, leaving them in desperate financial straits.” [Denver Post, 3/12/21]
MICHIGAN:
Michigan Families On SNAP Will Receive Extra Benefits Due To The ARP And Michigan Head Start Programs Will Receive $34 Million. “Deeply divided along party lines, the U.S. House on Wednesday gave final passage to a sweeping $1.9-trillion bill that will send billions to help Michigan taxpayers, businesses, schools and governments recover from the year-old COVID-19 pandemic. […] Some 1.3 million Michiganders receiving food benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will continue to receive $27 additional a month into September. Head Start programs in Michigan that provide childhood education and nutrition are set to receive an additional $34 million.” [Detroit Free Press, 3/10/21]
NORTH CAROLINA:
Asheville, North Carolina: Local Restaurateurs Praised President Biden Following The Passage Of The ARP, Saying They Finally Were Getting The Help They Needed. “Restaurant owners are celebrating after the passage of the American Rescue Plan, including two local chefs who helped lobby congress on behalf of cohorts across the country. President Joe Biden on March 11 signed the $1.9 trillion bill which, along with other pandemic aid, directs $28.6 billion in relief to restaurants and bars. The grant program, modeled on the Restaurants Act that stalled last year in the Senate, will funnel debt-free aid to independent restaurants with 20 or fewer locations. Grant amounts will be based on the difference in revenue lost as a result of the pandemic, which forced an estimated 110,000 bars and restaurants to close and 2.4 million lost jobs. […] ‘The fact that the Biden administration heard us, I don’t have the words to express how that feels,’ she said. ‘Independent restaurants finally feel seen and heard after a year of screaming that this pandemic has hurt us more than it has any other industry, and it’s fantastic.’” [Asheville Citizen Times, 3/15/21]
Charlotte, North Carolina: Black Farmers In North Carolina Will Receive Relief Funding Due To The ARP. “Since the end of Reconstruction, Black farmers have learned their biggest threat is not drought, blight or insect infestation, but something more insidious: Discriminatory practices by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the very agency that is supposed to help farmers stay on the land and be productive. The USDA has admitted it systematically denied Blacks and other people of color access to the same loan and grant programs that have helped generations of white farmers get the financing they needed to hold onto their land in lean years and even expand their operations. […] Help may be on its way finally through a provision in the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill approved by Congress and signed into law last week by President Joe Biden. The package provides $5 billion for socially disadvantaged farmers of color, including $4 billion for the forgiveness of outstanding debt and $1 billion for training, outreach, education, technical assistance and grants. ‘It’s a significant piece of legislation that’s going to help thousands of farmers get relief,’ said John Boyd Jr., founder and president of the non-profit National Black Farmers Association.” [Charlotte Observer, 3/16/21]
PENNSYLVANIA:
Norristown, Pennsylvania: The Money Going To The Local School District Will Mean “The Difference Between Opening As Soon As Possible And Not. “While many surrounding suburbs have returned children to classrooms, close to 8,000 students in the Norristown Area School District are still being taught remotely a year into the pandemic. […] But that may soon change. Norristown, which has a budget of about $165 million, is poised to receive $20 million through the massive federal relief bill steering billions of dollars to schools across the country. The aid is directed at districts with higher shares of low-income families, with 20% designated to address learning loss that students have experienced during the pandemic. […] The grants represent a historic federal investment in schools: An estimated $4.5 billion for districts and charter schools in Pennsylvania, and $2.5 billion to those in New Jersey. That’s on top of lesser rounds of federal aid awarded in prior COVID-19 relief bills. […] The new surge of federal money ‘means the difference between opening as soon as possible and not,’ said Donna Cooper, executive director of the advocacy group Public Citizens for Children and Youth.” [Philadelphia Inquirer, 3/14/21]
UTAH:
Salt Lake City, Utah: Stimulus Checks From The ARP Are Already Arriving In Utahns’ Bank Accounts. “SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Stimulus checks started hitting people’s bank accounts over the weekend, part of President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package that was signed into law March 10. […] Most Americans who haven’t already received it should get it via direct deposit by Wednesday. […] Local economists said this can add up fast for Utah families. The Beehive State is set to receive $3.8 billion in stimulus checks alone. ‘We have the youngest population in the country,’ said Robert Spendlove, senior economist for Zions Bank. ‘We also have the highest fertility rate in the country. So we have a lot of kids, and a lot of dependents, and a lot of larger families. So this will have a unique impact relative to the rest of the country.’” [KSL TV, 3/15/21]