The American Rescue Plan Act, signed March 11, 2021, was a roughly $1.9 trillion pandemic recovery law that sent $1,400 stimulus checks, temporarily enlarged the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit, expanded Affordable Care Act premium subsidies, funded rental and mortgage aid, poured $350 billion into state and local governments, backed small businesses and restaurants, sent nearly $122 billion to K-12 schools, and rescued failing multiemployer pension plans. Most of those programs have expired or are in their final months. A few are still doing work in 2026, and one expiration this January raised health insurance costs for millions of marketplace enrollees.
Direct Payments and Tax Credits for Households
The law’s most visible provision was a third round of stimulus payments, formally called 2021 Recovery Rebates under 26 U.S.C. § 6428B. Eligible individuals received $1,400, married couples filing jointly received $2,800, and an additional $1,400 went out for every dependent claimed on the return, including adult dependents for the first time in the pandemic rounds.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 6428B – 2021 Recovery Rebates to Individuals
The full payment went to single filers earning up to $75,000 and joint filers earning up to $150,000. It phased out quickly above those thresholds. A single filer with no dependents lost the entire credit at $80,000 in adjusted gross income; a childless married couple lost it at $160,000. Filers claiming dependents had higher cutoffs because their total credit was larger.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 6428B – 2021 Recovery Rebates to Individuals
The IRS pushed most payments out automatically. Anyone who missed one could claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on a 2021 tax return, but that filing window has closed. No further stimulus payments are available under this law.
For tax year 2021 only, the law raised the Child Tax Credit from $2,000 per child to $3,600 for children under six and $3,000 for children ages six through seventeen, and made the credit fully refundable so families with no tax liability received the full amount.2U.S. Department of the Treasury. Child Tax Credit Half was paid in advance as monthly checks from July through December 2021 (up to $300 per month for each child under six and $250 for older children), with the balance claimed at tax time. Starting with tax year 2022 the credit reverted to $2,000 with more limited refundability. Congress has not made the higher amounts permanent.
The Earned Income Tax Credit also got a one-year boost for workers without qualifying children at home. The maximum credit for those workers nearly tripled to roughly $1,500 for 2021, and eligibility extended for the first time to workers ages 19 through 24 and workers 65 and older. This too returned to pre-ARP levels in 2022.
Health Insurance Subsidies and the 2026 Expiration
The provision most likely to affect your budget right now is one that ended. Before the ARP, ACA premium tax credits were limited to households earning between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level. The law removed the 400% income cap entirely and lowered the share of income all eligible households were expected to pay, with those up to 150% of poverty paying nothing.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 36B – Refundable Credit for Coverage Under a Qualified Health Plan
Those enhanced subsidies were extended once by the Inflation Reduction Act but expired for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2026.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 36B – Refundable Credit for Coverage Under a Qualified Health Plan Marketplace enrollees now owe a larger share of income toward premiums, and households above 400% of the federal poverty level lose subsidy eligibility entirely.4Congress.gov. Enhanced Premium Tax Credit and 2026 Exchange Premiums If you buy coverage on the marketplace, check your plan’s 2026 cost during open enrollment.
A separate ARP provision paid 100% of COBRA premiums for workers who lost employer coverage between April and September 2021. That subsidy expired long ago.
Rental and Mortgage Assistance
The Emergency Rental Assistance program (ERA2), created under Section 3201, delivered $21.55 billion through state, local, and tribal governments to cover back rent, current rent, utilities, and related costs for low-income tenants.5U.S. Department of the Treasury. H.R. 1319 American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 The performance period ended September 30, 2025. Grantees can no longer use these funds to help renters.6U.S. Department of the Treasury. Emergency Rental Assistance Program Some state and local rental programs funded from other sources may still be running.
The Homeowner Assistance Fund, funded at $9.961 billion under Section 3206, covered mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance, utilities, and HOA dues for homeowners in pandemic-related hardship.8U.S. Department of the Treasury. Homeowner Assistance Fund
Money Still Reaching Governments and Businesses
Two companion funds sent $350 billion to governments. The Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund under 42 U.S.C. § 802 appropriated $219.8 billion for states, territories, and tribes.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 802 – Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund The Local Fiscal Recovery Fund under 42 U.S.C. § 803 sent $130.2 billion to counties, cities, and smaller local governments.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 US Code 803 – Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund Recipients could spend the money on replacing lost revenue, responding to the public health emergency, premium pay for essential workers, and water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure. The obligation deadline passed December 31, 2024, and all funds must be spent by December 31, 2026, with anything unspent returning to the Treasury.10Federal Register. Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds Local projects funded with these dollars should be wrapping up this year.
The State Small Business Credit Initiative received nearly $10 billion to run through state, territorial, and tribal governments as loan participation, venture capital, and other financing tools, plus roughly $200 million in technical assistance.11U.S. Department of the Treasury. State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI)12SAM.gov. State Small Business Credit Initiative Technical Assistance Grant Program Because the money works through revolving loans and equity investments, SSBCI is still actively deploying capital and will keep supporting small businesses beyond the initial disbursement period.
Two other business and school programs are effectively closed. The Restaurant Revitalization Fund under Section 5003 set aside $28.6 billion in grants for restaurants, bars, food trucks, and caterers, capped at $10 million per business and $5 million per location.13SAM.gov. Restaurant Revitalization Fund Demand hit more than $72 billion, roughly triple the money available. The program closed to new applications in 2021, and the spending deadline for recipients was March 11, 2023.
K-12 schools received nearly $122 billion through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund under Section 2001, with at least 20% of each district’s allocation dedicated to evidence-based learning-loss interventions.14U.S. Department of Education. American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund Fact Sheet The obligation deadline was September 30, 2024, with a liquidation deadline shortly after; approved extensions gave districts up to 18 months more.15U.S. Department of Education. ARP ESSER and ARP EANS Obligation Deadlines and Extensions Most ESSER money is now spent, and many districts are working through the fiscal cliff of positions and programs that were funded with one-time federal dollars.
Multiemployer Pension Rescue
The law authorized the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation to provide Special Financial Assistance to distressed multiemployer plans, which are retirement plans jointly managed by employers and unions in industries like trucking, construction, and food service. The one-time cash infusions are designed to keep troubled plans solvent through at least 2051, at a total estimated cost between $74 billion and $91 billion.16Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
As of late 2024, more than $69 billion had been approved for 98 plans. Over $1.6 billion had gone out as restorative payments to more than 121,000 retirees whose benefits had previously been cut, averaging about $13,600 per person. The program is expected to protect roughly two million workers and retirees.17U.S. Department of Labor. US Department of Labor Reports Distressed Pension Assistance PBGC continues to process applications.
Where the Programs Stand in 2026
- Stimulus payments: expired. The 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit could only be claimed on a 2021 return.
- Child Tax Credit expansion: expired after tax year 2021; credit is back to $2,000 per child.
- EITC expansion for childless workers: expired after tax year 2021.
- Enhanced ACA premium subsidies: expired January 1, 2026. Marketplace enrollees face higher costs, and the 400% federal poverty level cliff is back.
- State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds: must be fully spent by December 31, 2026.
- Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA2): closed as of September 30, 2025.
- Homeowner Assistance Fund: winding down toward a September 30, 2026 closeout; many state programs already exhausted.
- Restaurant Revitalization Fund: closed; spending deadline passed March 2023.
- ESSER K-12 funds: obligation deadline was September 30, 2024; most funds spent.
- SSBCI small business capital: still active through state programs.
- Multiemployer pension relief: still active; PBGC continues processing applications.
Of everything the law did, the change that lands hardest on household budgets this year is the end of the enhanced marketplace subsidies. If you buy coverage through the ACA marketplace, your expected premium contribution has gone up as a share of income, and households above 400% of the federal poverty level are no longer eligible for any premium tax credit at all. Look at your renewal notice and price other plans during open enrollment before your current coverage auto-renews.