Feds Deliver $54 Billion in COVID Relief Funding

The Department of Education this week announced today that more than $54 billion in emergency relief funding is now available to support fully reopening K-12 schools, facilitate continuity of learning, and measure and address the learning loss caused by a lack of in-person learning opportunities. This funding is allocated by the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021, Public Law 116-260, signed into law by President Donald J. Trump on Dec. 27, 2020.

“Every student deserves access to a full-time education and the opportunity to safely learn in-person if they choose. Sadly, all too many schools are still refusing to serve their students, while more than $9 billion in emergency CARES Act funds — money that’s been available since April — hasn’t been drawn down,” said Secretary DeVos. “This new relief funding, in addition to the funds still languishing in CARES Act accounts, must be used to deliver a quality, full-time education to every student and to identify and remediate students who have fallen behind. We know that all too many students are trapped in schools that did not effectively transition to remote instruction or remained closed for much longer than public health experts recommended. Public schools can and must continue instruction and safely reopen.”

This additional funding can be used to measure student progress, identify students who have fallen behind, and provide them with differentiated instruction and learning resources that will bring them up to grade level.

To see how much each state will receive as part of today’s announcement, please click here. The allocations are based on a formula that targets low-income students.

The funding allocations announced are part of the $81.9 billion Congress allocated to the Education Stabilization Fund in the latest COVID relief package. It follows the $30 billion allocated by the CARES Act, and likewise will be distributed to K-12 schools and higher education institutions. The Department continues to make funds available as quickly as possible, at the direction of the Secretary.

Parents can track how their state and local education agencies are using this funding through the Education Stabilization Fund (ESF) Portal, a searchable tool that displays how states and districts are spending their ESF dollars.

The Department continues to update www.ed.gov/coronavirus with information for students, parents, educators, and local and state leaders about how to prevent the spread of COVID-19. For additional resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about COVID-19, please visit www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.