Hoyer Statement Marking One Year Since the American Rescue Plan was Signed into Law

WASHINGTON, DC - Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05) released the following statement today marking one year since the American Rescue Plan was signed into law:

"One year ago marked a turning page in our state's ability to recover from nearly two years of a public health emergency and economic pain. The Democratic-passed American Rescue Plan was a strong and historic package that confronted the COVID-19 pandemic, helped our small businesses keep their doors open, and ensured Maryland's hardworking families didn't fall through the cracks. The transformative nature of this relief has been felt far and wide across our district – and continues to deliver to this day. In one year, Maryland has received $650 million for 68 colleges and universities, including $219 million for community colleges and over $150 million for HBCUs. With the historic expansion of the Child Tax Credit, an estimated over 700,000 families with over 1.1 million children were able to put food on the table and cover additional expenses – including 88,000 families in the Fifth District alone. The Rescue Plan also helped our small businesses stay open and keep the lights on, with $18 million in restaurant grants and $214 million for Shuttered Venue Grants that served 118 venues across our state. This funding saved thousands of jobs and blunted the economic fallout so many of our workers faced during the height of the pandemic.

"When states like Maryland were hemorrhaging their budgets because of the unimaginable setbacks from the pandemic, the American Rescue Plan reimbursed, replenished, and awarded millions of dollars to state and local governments so that they could operate effectively during this crisis and keep our teachers, firefighters and first responders on the payroll. Without the American Rescue Plan, sites like the FEMA-run mass vaccination site in Greenbelt would not have been able to vaccinate tens of thousands of residents, with a deliberate focus on vaccine equity and targeting our disproportionately impacted communities. I am proud to have brought this law to the House Floor and ensure it was enacted, and I have thoroughly enjoyed hearing from folks across the Fifth District about how this law has made such a positive difference in their lives."