EDA American Rescue Plan Programs
Partnering with America’s Communities to Build Back Better

On March 11, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden signed the American Rescue Plan into law. This historic legislation was designed to enable all Americans to respond to and recover from the impacts of COVID-19.

Under the American Rescue Plan, EDA was allocated $3 billion in supplemental funding to meet the urgent needs of American communities. With deep gratitude to its partners, industry, and communities across the country, EDA is proud to share that across 780 grants awarded through six innovative grant programs, as of September 27, 2022, EDA invested its $3 billion in transformational American Rescue Plan projects.

EDA’s American Rescue Plan grant programs include:

1. Build Back Better Regional Challenge: $1 billion awarded to 21 regional coalitions (5-8 component awards per coalition), each of which received between $25 million and $65 million to transform their regional economy by growing an industry sector. EDA also gave awards to 60 phase 1 finalists to support the development of their ambitious projects.
2. Good Jobs Challenge: $500 million awarded to 32 industry-led workforce training partnerships to invest in innovative approaches to workforce development that will secure job opportunities for more than 50,000 Americans.
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   Economic Adjustment Assistance program: $500 million awarded to 256 diverse projects —including but not limited to enabling infrastructure, workforce development, business facilities and planning grants — to address the economic development needs of communities today while preparing them for the future by in investing in enabling infrastructure, workforce development, business facilities, and planning grants.
4. Indigenous Communities program: $100 million awarded to 51 grantees to support economic development projects in Indigenous communities for similar types of projects as described under Economic Adjustment Assistance. Across all six American Rescue Plan programs, inclusive of the Indigenous Communities program, EDA awarded a total of 127 grants totaling $448 million.
5. Travel, Tourism & Outdoor Recreation program: $750 million awarded to 185 grantees to help support regions hard hit by declines to these industries through projects to build new tourist attractions (museums, event venues, hiking trails, campgrounds, etc.), develop tourism-related economic plans, and support workforce training in the tourism sector.
6. Statewide Planning, Research & Networks: $1 million planning grants to each of the 59 U.S. states and territories and $31 million to 14 research and networks (also known as Communities of Practice) grantees.

Additionally, when the American Rescue Plan programs were launched in 2021, EDA committed $300 million to American coal communities through its Coal Communities Commitment. Ultimately, EDA exceeded the commitment and awarded $551 million to coal communities.

Please click the logos below for more information on each American Rescue Plan grant program and the Coal Communities Commitment:

Build Back Better Regional Challenge

Good Jobs Challenge

Economic Adjustment Assistance

Indigenous Communities

Travel, Tourism and Outdoor Recreation

Statewide Planning, Research and Networks

Coal Communities Commitment