American Rescue Plan Act Economic Assistance Programs

In March of 2021 Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act which is a $1.9 trillion economic stimulus bill aimed at continuing the country’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The State of Alaska received $1.02 billion in ARPA funds; some of those funds will assist nonprofits, small businesses and individuals through a variety of grant programs.  As Homer continues its recovery from the effects of the COVID pandemic, we wanted to let you know that Federal and State grants, loans and tax credits remain available to fuel Alaskan businesses and non-profits.

You can find out about them at various websites designed specifically to help you learn about ARPA aid programs and assist you in applying.  Go to ARPA Resources at https://alaskaarpa.org/ to stay up to date on the latest legislation and access economic relief programs as they roll out.  For instance, you can get information about grant programs such as the PPP and EIDL, as well as industry specific opportunities like the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) available through the Small Business Administration for businesses with fewer than 50 employees and for live venue operators, movie theaters and museums.  The Small Business Development Center has a great COVID-19 Resource page for small businesses at https://aksbdc.org/covid19/.  

Nonprofit organizations will also find a comprehensive listing of grant opportunities, ranging from promoting farmers markets to support for behavioral health and substance use disorder organizations.  Arts and humanities organizations can will find grant resources at National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) for projects. Similarly, the National Endowment for the Arts has opportunities for local arts agencies to support existing jobs, new jobs, or to restore jobs that were furloughed or eliminated due the pandemic among other operating costs.