FOR WORKING ARTISTS

The ARPA for the Arts Income Replacement grant is a one-time grant provided to working artists who derive a significant portion of their income from their artistic practice and who experienced personal financial loss from their artistic practice due to COVID-19 between the dates of April 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020. Artists may apply for up to $15,000.

RAC, in accordance with ARPA federal guidelines and the City of St. Louis, is prioritizing working artists who (1) derive a significant portion of their income from their artistic practice, (2) reside in the city of St. Louis AND (3) live within a Qualified Census Tract (QCT). Click here to view the QCT map. A brief tutorial on how to verify your address is available here.

If you do not live within a QCT but live in St. Louis City, please apply and your application will be waitlisted. Waitlist updates will be provided in mid-September.

In addition to the above residential requirements, the ARPA for the Arts Income Replacement grant is open to working artists who:

• were 18 years of age on April 1, 2020
• can verify they experienced personal financial loss from their artistic practice between April 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020

Yes. Your Single Member LLC must have a Unique Entity Identification Number (UEI). (It can take as long as six to eight weeks to obtain this number, if you do not have one). For information about acquiring or renewing a UEI number, please review the instructions here: SAM.gov. You must upload your Single Member LLC – Articles of Organization and Certificate of Organization. To verify your status, please check here: MO Online Business Portal – https://bsd.sos.mo.gov/

Proof of Residency Document #1 (include ONE of the following):

• Motor Vehicle or Driver License Renewal Postcard
• Unexpired Missouri driver license
• Nondriver license
• State-issued identification card

Proof of Residency Document #2 (include ONE of the following):

• Utility Bill (e.g.: phone, water, gas, electric, trash, sewer, internet, and cable)
• Federal, State, or Local Government Correspondence or Document
• Financial Document or Voided Check
• Insurance Policy or Medical Document
• Current Missouri Voter Information (https://www.sos.mo.gov/elections/goVoteMissouri/register)

As defined by HUD: Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Qualified Census Tracts must have 50 percent of households with incomes below 60 percent of the Area Median Gross Income (AMGI) or have a poverty rate of 25 percent or more. To confirm your current residence is within a QCT: https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sadda/sadda_qct.html.

There are several ways to locate ARPA for the Arts Income Replacement grant information:

1. Visit our RACSTL @ the City Foundry STL pop-up location during business hours:
   3730 Foundry Way, suite 149
   St. Louis, MO 63110.
   RACSTL @ City Foundry STL is located across from City Winery and the Food Hall.
   Please contact Tracey Morgan, ARPA for the Arts Lead at 314-863-5811 ext. 1013, or ARPAfortheArts@racstl.org if you would like to schedule an appointment or have questions. YOU MUST MAKE AN APPOINTMENT FOR GRANT ASSISTANCE.
2. Visit www.racstl.org/arpa-for-artists
3. Follow our Instagram and Facebook accounts
4. Sign up for our e-newsletter here.

The application process for the ARPA for the Arts Income Replacement grant is as follows:

1. Create an account within the Grant Management System.
2. Take the Eligibility Quiz within the Grant Management System.
3. Complete the ARPA for the Arts Artist Income Replacement application.
4. Within the application, you will be required to provide proof of residency.

If your application is waitlisted, it means you live in the city of St. Louis but not in a Qualified Census Tract (QCT). RAC, in accordance with ARPA federal guidelines and the City of St. Louis, is prioritizing working artists who reside in the city of St. Louis AND who live within a QCT. Dependent upon the number of applications received for the ARPA for the Arts Income Replacement grants and the amount of money available come mid-September, RAC may request that you provide additional information verifying your lost income during the period between April 1, 2020 and December 31, 2021.

RAC declines applications for two primary reasons: (1) application does not meet the eligibility criteria and (2) all grant funds are allocated.

ARPA for the Arts Income Replacement grants will be dispersed via automatic deposit. Once an application is successfully processed, applicants will be notified via the Blackbaud Grants Management System as well as a direct email to the contact email address listed in the application.  A terms and conditions agreement must be signed before payment. Grant awards are disbursed in a single payment though automatic deposit to a designated bank account. RAC uses the BILL.com electronic payments platform. There are instructions on the RAC website that will guide grantees through this process. Once the account is created with the proper banking information, RAC will process the award payment.

The ARPA for the Arts Grant payment is made in one lump sum disbursement equaling the total award amount.

Please note that all ARPA for the Arts Grants are considered taxable income. Please plan accordingly.

Grantees will receive instructions on reporting once the grant is made. Reporting requirements include a narrative statement on how the ARPA for the Arts funds were spent. Additionally, grantees may be asked to participate in a fiscal audit conducted by a third-party on behalf of RAC in accordance with the compliance requirements of the City of St. Louis and the United States Treasury Department. 

The application portal opens August 1, 2023 and closes October 15, 2023. Grants are awarded on a first come, first-served basis until the funds are depleted. Please note that RAC, in accordance with ARPA federal guidelines and the city of St. Louis, is prioritizing working artists who reside in the city of St. Louis and within a Qualified Census Tract.

If you meet the residential requirements, this is the application review process:
Once a completed application is submitted, the ARPA for the Arts team will review your application. Please see the grants guidelines for a timeline/schedule with specific dates and timeframes for notification.

If the application is complete, it will be approved by the ARPA for the Arts Team. If there are issues with your application or if it is incomplete, the ARPA for the Arts Team will contact you via the Blackbaud Grants Management System as well as a direct email to the contact email address listed in your application.

If you live in the City of St. Louis but not within a Qualified Census Tract, this is the application review process:
Once a completed application is submitted, the ARPA for the Arts team will process your application and add you to a waitlist in the order that your application was submitted.

If the application is complete, it will be reviewed by the ARPA for the Arts Team and you will be contacted in mid-September with a request for additional information that verifies the income lost during the period between April 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020.

Please see the grants guidelines for a timeline/schedule with specific dates and timeframes for notification.

If you are awarded an ARPA for the Arts Artist Income Replacement Grant, the ARPA funds must by spent by February 28, 2024, and reporting completed by March 31, 2024. Reporting instructions will be issued once a grant is made.

Yes. Please note that this grant is considered taxable income so please keep records accordingly. RAC and the Volunteer Lawyers & Accountants for the Arts will hold a workshop on recordkeeping in the near future. Stay tuned!