President Biden has signed the American Rescue Plan into law, and now help is on the way. This historic package is a win for Maryland and a win for the American people. It confronts the challenges of this pandemic and the resulting economic fallout head-on and delivers the bold relief that so many Americans need. I worked to secure federal resources that will help Marylanders overcome these challenging times.

Right now, many of our fellow Marylanders are in need of a lifeline. The American Rescue Plan (ARP) provides just that. It includes $1,400 in direct payments for eligible individuals which, in addition to the earlier $600 payments, brings the total payment to $2,000. Over 2.5 million Maryland households will receive these payments, bringing over $6.25 billion directly into the pockets of Marylanders. This package also expands the Child Tax Credit to $3,000 per child, or $3,600 per child under six years old, and half of this amount will be provided in recurring payments to families in the second half of this year. This provision has the power to lift 52,000 Maryland children out of poverty and benefit a total of more than 1.1 million children in our state. This move – combined with an expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit, which benefits 255,000 workers without qualifying children – is one of the single most significant actions we could take to reduce poverty. This package also delivers $3.87 billion in direct funding to the State of Maryland, $1.173 billion in direct funding to Maryland’s county governments, and $1.14 billion in funding to Maryland’s city and municipal governments, totaling $6.355 billion that will help ramp up vaccination distribution, bolster COVID-19 response efforts, and keep frontline workers on the job. This emergency measure also provides resources to get students back to school more quickly and safely, as well as over $7 billion to help end the digital divide for students who lack the ability to connect online with the classroom or do their homework assignments.

We also successfully fought for direct resources for vaccine equity so more vaccines will reach the hardest hit communities, to help remedy the State of Maryland’s inadequate and inequitable response. In addition, the ARP includes expanded unemployment benefits through September 6th; child care relief; a doubling of the rental relief provided in the December stimulus; new support for homeowners at risk of foreclosure; additional help to small businesses and the hardest hit sectors, like restaurants; help for thousands of Marylanders to reduce the costs of health insurance; and much more. To learn more about what’s included in this new law, please view our fact sheet on the American Rescue Plan by clicking here.

This sweeping effort was made possible thanks to the countless Marylanders who reached out to my office throughout this crisis and shared their experiences and struggles. You have been calling for action, and with the American Rescue Plan, we answered your calls. As we push forward to tackle the other urgent challenges before our communities, I hope to continue hearing from you so that we can keep marching together towards progress ahead.

 

               Chris Van Hollen