American Rescue Plan Fact Sheet: Impact on Alaska

by Joseph Robinette Biden

The American Rescue Plan: Impacts on Alaska

The Need for Action in Alaska

The pandemic and the associated economic crisis have had a severe impact on Alaska. The need for action is clear:

• Since the pandemic began, more than 50,000 people have been infected with COVID-19 and more than 300 people have died.
• The unemployment rate is 6.5%, up from 5.1% before the pandemic.
• Since February 2020, more than 4,000 fewer people are employed.
• 62,000 adults – 13% of all adults in the state – report not having enough food to eat. This includes 33,000 adults living with children, or 17% of all adults living with children, who report that the children in their household do not have enough to eat.
• An estimated 31,000 renters or 21% of renters are not caught up on rent.
• An estimated 179,000 adults or 36% of all adults statewide report having difficulty covering normal household expenses.

The Effect of the American Rescue Plan on Alaska

President Biden’s American Rescue Plan will provide Alaska with:

• $1.45 billion in state fiscal relief
• $250 million in local fiscal relief
• More than $370 million in relief for K-12 schools
• Economic impact payments of up to $1,400 per person (above the $600 per person provided in December) for more than 430,000 adults and 193,000 children. This is 84% of all adults in the state and 85% of all children in the state.
• Additional relief of up to $1,600 per child through the Child Tax Credit to the families of 167,000 children, lifting 12,000 children out of poverty
• Additional relief of up to nearly $1,000 through the Earned Income Tax Credit to 41,000 childless workers, including many in frontline jobs
• Marketplace health insurance premiums that are $2,300 lower per month for a 60-year old couple earning $75,000 per year