Leveraging Federal Economic Recovery Funds for an Equitable and Inclusive Economic Recovery

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began nearly three years ago, $4.5 trillion in federal funds have been appropriated for virus treatment and prevention, as well as easing the economic impact the pandemic has had on individuals, families, businesses, communities, and state and local governments.  

Such large sums are challenging to envision, more challenging to spend, and even more difficult to track to ensure they meet their intended purposes and outcomes. But that is the exact challenge the Trust has taken on.  

When the Trust embarked on its strategic goal to close the region’s racial and ethnic wealth gap, we never anticipated a global pandemic, much less the enormous investment from the federal government to combat it and its resulting economic crisis. But this unprecedented injection of federal funds presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to accelerate lasting investments to close the racial and ethnic wealth gap—if we spend them equitably and inclusively.  

Government alone cannot be held responsible for an equitable and inclusive economic recovery. The public, private, nonprofit, and philanthropic sectors are all accountable to ensure these funds benefit historically disinvested communities that bore the brunt of the pandemic’s health and economic burden. To this end, the Trust has developed short and long-term strategies to hold ourselves accountable and support other sectors’ ability to ensure these transformative funds achieve their intended goal. This strategy includes:  

• Tracking federal economic recovery funds 
• Supporting access to federally funded government grants and contracts 
• Advocating for more equitable and inclusive government systems and resources 

Tracking Federal Economic Recovery Funds

The Trust launched the Federal Recovery Funds Dashboard in October to provide comprehensive information on how federal economic recovery funds are being spent in the region. The dashboard compiles data from federal, state, county, and city sources into one centralized location so users can understand how all levels of government are allocating funds toward programs and initiatives aligned to the following topics:  

• Community Investments: address a community’s collective needs, such as infrastructure, small business support, and community development.  
• Community Safety: programs and initiatives aimed at preventing violence, assist returning citizens reintegrating into their community, provide supportive services to victims of violence, and implement alternative emergency response services. 
• Household Investments: targeted support for households, such as direct cash assistance, utility assistance, and legal services, and expand awareness of and access to public benefits. 
• Housing: programs addressing a range of housing needs for renters, homeowners, people experiencing homelessness, including affordability, stability, shelter solutions, and temporary and permanent supportive housing services. 
• Workforce: programs that connect people to employment opportunities. 

Supporting Access to Federally Funded Government Grants and Contracts 

To support greater access to federal grants, the Trust has launched the Open Call for Capacity Building Ideas funding opportunity. Government agencies at all levels are important funding sources for organizations providing invaluable support.  However, the responsibility of being fiscal stewards of taxpayer dollars can create unintended barriers and challenges for organizations these funds aim to support.   

This funding opportunity aims to provide organizations with the capacity building support they need to overcome the challenges impeding them from successfully attaining and executing on government grants and contracts.  

Advocating for More Equitable and Inclusive Government Grants and Resources 

The pandemic was not the first time the federal government had to step in to stabilize economic downturns and provide relief to communities across the country— and it won’t be the last time either. In the aftermath of the Great Recession, the U.S. economy saw disproportionate recovery with white households ultimately faring better than they had before the recession. Meanwhile, Black and Latinx households barely reached pre-recession levels by the time COVID-19 put our economy into another tailspin.  

The lesson from 13 years ago: economic recoveries will continue to remain uneven until we ensure every community recovers at equitable rates. We must also reform our current systems so that communities with the greatest needs have easier access to resources. As a longer-term strategy, the Trust will leverage learnings from this economic recovery to advocate for a more equitable system that is better equipped to catch people before they fall.   

While government plays a critical role in an inclusive and equitable recovery, it cannot do this alone. It is incumbent on all of us to play a part.