As part of the state’s spending plan for federal CARES Act funding, $9.4 million was designated to provide direct aid to arts councils and arts organizations in an effort to mitigate business disruptions caused by COVID-19. These funds will be distributed on a per-capita basis to all North Carolina counties with a population less than 1 million people.
The purpose of the funds is to offset business disruption and/or expenses incurred due to COVID-19 between March 1, 2020, and December 30, 2020. The following expenses can be considered: paid salaries and benefits (including contractors), on-going operating expenses, costs associated with canceling programs and creating virtual programs, and COVID-related safety and cleaning measures. For the purpose of this grant program, revenue losses are not considered for mitigation. North Carolina CARES for Arts funding cannot reimburse any expenses already paid for by other federal relief funds such as PPP loans, direct grants from the NEA, and stimulus grants issued by the North Carolina Arts Council.
The North Carolina Arts Council will distribute North Carolina CARES for Arts funding in two ways:
Organizations that meet the following criteria are eligible to apply directly to the N.C. Arts Council to receive CARES for Arts funding:
Grants will be awarded by county on a per-capita basis. Grant amounts will vary depending on the size of the business interruption claim, the number of eligible applications received from the county, and funding availability.
As funds are meant to reimburse expenses incurred between March and December, North Carolina CARES for Arts grant awards can be used towards the on-going operations and programming of grantee and do not require a match. Final reports will be due on July 31, 2021.
Applications will be available in the online GO Smart portal on October 1, 2020 with a deadline of Friday, October 23, 2020. The following questions and documents will be required for the application:
Narrative questions and uploads:
The deadline for submission is Friday, October 23, 2020.
Vicki Vitiello
Director of Operations & Arts Learning
vicki.vitiello@ncdcr.gov
Leigh Ann Wilder
Creative Economies Director
leighann.wilder@ncdcr.gov