When the bipartisan Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) was signed into law on March 27, 2020, it included $400 million in emergency funds to states to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus for the 2020 federal election cycle.
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, And Still I Vote, and many national and state organizations advocated for funding to provide states with additional resources to protect the 2020 elections. Now, it’s critical that these funds get to the states and help ensure fair elections.
This supplemental appropriation funding is distributed by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) and the grant requires states to make a 20 percent match available within 2 years of receiving the funds. The CARES Act funds must be used for activities related to the pandemic’s impact on the 2020 federal elections, and states will be required to report on how they used the funds. Although the deadline for states to request funds was on April 14, states can contact the EAC with an updated timeline for their request.