Maryland Congressional Delegation Announces More than $48 Million to Support Counties and Cities in Responding to COVID-19

The full Maryland congressional delegation, including U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, John P. Sarbanes, Andy Harris, M.D., Anthony G. Brown, Jamie B. Raskin and David Trone, today announced $48,404,965 to support counties and cities in Maryland in their response to the economic and housing impacts of the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). These awards come through the CARES Act, which was signed into law last week.

“Local governments are on the frontlines of this crisis,” said the lawmakers. “This federal funding will shore up the capacity of Maryland’s cities and counties to respond to its widespread consequences. Funds can be used to address a wide variety of needs including providing shelter to homeless individuals, increasing affordable housing options, and maintaining crucial public services during this difficult time. We look forward to the announcement of additional awards to Maryland state and local governments in the days and weeks to come.”  

Statewide, funding is allocated through the following U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs:

• $30,870,453 through Community Development Block Grant (CDBG),
• $15,408,028 through Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) program, and
• $1,520,827 Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program. 

The funding announced today represents $2 billion of the overall $5 billion provided for CDBG, $2 billion of the overall $4 billion provided for ESG, and the entirety of the $65 million for HOPWA under the CARES Act. The additional CDBG and ESG awards will be distributed by the Secretary of HUD to the communities that are hardest hit by COVID-19 within 90 days.

The full breakdown of funding is as follows: