With the quickly changing COVID-19 landscape, states and communities must adjust their funding strategies to nimbly meet evolving needs. This means they must transition from a strategy of reactive emergency response (as seen under early federal COVID-relief plans) to a proactive recovery response that leverages funding from the American Rescue Plan. The ongoing threat of the virus is a reminder that leaders may be between emergency response and recovery for a while, necessitating a delicate balance. As part of finding that balance, it is critical for leaders to consider the need for a longer-term mindset grounded in equitable recovery, as highlighted in the American Rescue Plan and its subsequent policy guidance.

Although American Rescue Plan funding offers monumental benefits and truly unprecedented opportunities, state and local government agencies, policymakers, and all who work on behalf of children and youth face a similarly monumental challenge—efficiently and equitably administering huge amounts of new funding for historically underfunded programs and services. In many cases, they must navigate this new funding without any increased administrative capacity.

States and communities across the country have demonstrated immense creativity and scrappiness by tackling this challenge and maximizing the benefits for children and youth. These creative solutions have been particularly successful for communities with local coordinating bodies like local dedicated children’s funds and children’s cabinets.

In the coming weeks, we will feature a series of posts that highlight how two communities are using federal relief funding from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and the American Rescue Plan to navigate this transition from reaction to recovery. We will focus specifically on Larimer County, CO and Palm Beach County, FL, as these communities have demonstrated equitable and strategic use of recovery funds.

Larimer County’s story showcases how one community used federal stimulus funds to create a web-based tool that easily and efficiently connects the county’s families and child care providers. Palm Beach County’s story showcases the critical role that nongovernmental bodies have served during the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is our hope that these models will inspire local and state activists to mobilize and create long-term solutions to growing child care needs in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly as they prepare to leverage additional federal funding available from the American Rescue Plan. Search our online database to find out how much money your community or state will receive. The tool highlights funding available to all 50 states, U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia as well as more than 27,000 counties, cities, and towns; nearly 17,000 school districts; and 3,500 higher education institutions.

Kylie Wheeler is applied research and policy manager at Children’s Funding Project.