House American Rescue Plan Act Summary
In the last week of October the House debated their version of the American Rescue Plan Act, otherwise known as ARPA. This was a once in a lifetime influx of cash to assist the states with the covid-19 recovery and stabilization. The House passed a $3.65 billion package that included funds from ARPA as well as funds from our surplus 2021 tax revenue.
The bill addressed housing, food insecurity, economic development and workforce, health and human services, education and the environment.
Here is a breakdown of my district Earmarks and highlights of the statewide and regional funding.
The earmarks I secured include:
$50K for Fenways Cares Mutual Aid Initiative to distribute fresh food and Personal Protective Equipment to food insecure Fenway residents.
$50K for Women’s Lunch Place for the purpose of providing meals and services to homeless women and children in need
$75K for Friends of the Public Garden for the purpose of hosting the unveiling of the restored Shaw Memorial in the Boston Common in Boston, an event delayed as a result of COVID-19
$300K for Boch Center for capital improvements needed to safely reopen Wang and Shubert theatres located in Boston
$100K for Boston Architectural College for the purpose of hosting the Doshi Exhibit
$300K for The Museum of Science to hire and retain science, technology, engineering, and mathematics educators to help residents across STEM education at the Museum and virtually through MOS at school
The statewide and regional funding includes the following:
Housing:
$150M for public housing maintenance
$150M to create permanent supportive housing for chronically homeless individuals, survivors of domestic violence, seniors, and veterans
$100M for homeownership assistance
$100M for production and preservation of affordable rental housing for residents of municipalities disproportionately impacted by the pandemic
Food Insecurity:
$78M to address food insecurity
Economic Development:
$500M to replenish the Unemployment Trust Fund
$200M worth of tax relief for small businesses that paid personal taxes on state or federal relief awards
$60M in grants for small business relief with $35M reserved for minority-, women- and veteran-owned businesses
$125M to Massachusetts Cultural Council for grants
$40M for youth summer and school-year jobs
$12M to assist in the resettlement of Afghan refugees in Massachusetts
Workforce:
$500M toward providing premium pay for low- and middle-income workers who worked in-person during the COVID-19 State of Emergency
$150M to enhance workforce opportunities through workforce skills training
$100M for vocational and career technical schools
Health and Human Services:
$250M for financially strained hospitals
$20M for community health centers
$250M for behavioral health and substance use disorder treatment services
$100M for workforce initiatives with $15M specifically for community health centers
$150M for local and regional public health systems
$25M for prison re-entry grants
$10M for community-based gun violence prevention programs
$6.5M for coordination teams for triage treatment and services supports
$5M for Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (MLAC)
Education:
$100M for grants to public school districts with high concentrations of low-income students, English language learners, and communities disproportionately impacted by covid-19 to support improvements of indoor air quality and healthy learning environments
$75M for capital and maintenance projects for higher education
$25M for the Endowment Incentive Program at UMass state universities and community colleges
$20M for special education including
$10M for programs focused on recruiting and retaining educators of color
Environment:
$100M for port infrastructure development and revitalization to facilitate economic activity and support offshore wind industry
$100M toward infrastructure for communities to adapt to become climate resilient
$100M for water and sewer projects