Mayor Scott Announces Additional $4 Million to Support Baltimore Nonprofits with COVID-19 Impact
BALTIMORE, MD. (Friday, March 25, 2022) — Today, Mayor Brandon M. Scott and Baltimore Civic Fund President HyeSook Chung, announced an additional $4 million in economic recovery funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) for nonprofit organizations located in Baltimore City. This funding was made available through the City’s $641 million ARPA allocation, administered by the Mayor’s Office of Recovery Programs.
This third round of nonprofit relief funding builds on two prior COVID-19 relief grant opportunities through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, for a total of $11 million invested in the Baltimore nonprofit community since December 2020. The competitive grant opportunity opens April 1 and closes April 29, 2022.
“We’ve seen over the past two years the importance of our nonprofit partners in serving our communities throughout Baltimore City – and we know the devastating financial impacts of COVID-19 still continue,” said Mayor Brandon M. Scott. “We hope to reach even more nonprofit organizations providing critical services to Baltimoreans with this round of economic relief funding.”
The Baltimore Civic Fund, the administrator and steward of this nonprofit relief funding opportunity, will use an equity-based approach for grant funding decisions for the 2022 round, prioritizing nonprofit organizations located in historically disadvantaged neighborhoods. The priorities also include grant awards for Baltimore nonprofits that have not previously received funding from local, state, or federal COVID-19 relief programs; organizations with more than half of their employees residing in Baltimore City; and small organizations with 20 or fewer full-time employees. The Baltimore Civic Fund will also prioritize funding for organizations located within a qualified census tract within Baltimore City.
“We know fantastic nonprofit organizations providing critical services are located throughout our city – and come in all sizes,” said HyeSook Chung, President of the Baltimore Civic Fund. “This innovative approach to our grant funding will support us in getting needed funds to organizations that may not have been awarded previously.”
Eligible costs for this grant opportunity include areas most directly impacted by COVID-19, including working capital such as rent, payroll, and utilities; professional services; costs related to expanding outdoor services; infrastructure improvements associated with the mitigation of COVID-19; technology for employee telework; and purchase of PPE and other COVID-19 related supplies.
The previous rounds of nonprofit relief funding reached 283 nonprofit organizations in Baltimore City. They served Baltimore residents with various needs, including youth development, arts, support for homelessness and housing insecurity, food and wellness, and economic development and job training.
More information about the grant opportunity for nonprofit organizations, including further details about eligible costs and eligible organizations, can be found on the Baltimore Civic Fund website.