Program Guidelines - Individual Artists

    Iowa Arts & Culture Emergency Relief Fund 

    Iowa Arts & Culture Recovery Program
    December 2, 2020

    Program Guidelines - Individual Artists

    During the current funding round, Iowa Arts & Culture Recovery Program grants will be made available to support eligible Iowa artists who are experiencing financial hardship and can demonstrate lost revenue and/or increased expenditures due to the public health emergency and COVID-19 pandemic.

    Available Funding

    The Iowa Arts & Culture Recovery Program has been established with $7 million designated by Governor Kim Reynolds from the federal CARES Act. As demand for these grants is expected to exceed available funding, this will be a highly competitive program. No applicant is guaranteed a funding award or amount.

    Timeline

    December 2, 2020 - Application Opens
    The application will open on December 2, 2020.

    December 11, 2020 - Application Deadline
    The application will close on December 11, 2020 at 11:59 PM.

    December 30, 2020 - Award Notification
    Applicants will be notified of their status and funding decisions by December 30, 2020.

    March 1 - December 30, 2020 - Funding Period
    Grant funds must be spent on eligible expenses incurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic between March 1, 2020 and December 30, 2020.

    March 1, 2021 - Final Report Deadline
    Grant recipients are required to complete a final report by March 1, 2021.

    Funding

    Award amounts will be determined based on total available funds, the established review criteria and funding priorities, and financial information provided by the applicant, including:

    • An applicant’s average annual income from creative work; and
    • Necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency; and
    • Loss of revenue caused by closures, cancelled or postponed public programming, and/or business interruption due to the public health emergency; and
    • Prior financial assistance, awarded through any state or federal agencies, from the CARES Act.

    Funding Ranges and Limits

    • The minimum award will be $500. 
    • Award amounts will be capped at 50% of total eligible revenue losses and expenses or $5,000, whichever amount is less.
    • The department reserves the right to adjust funding award amounts and limits for any reason, including based on the total number and amount of requests.

    Eligible Use of Funds
    Grant funds must be directly tied to the following types of lost revenue and/or increased expenditures due to the public health emergency and COVID-19 pandemic related to the applicant’s creative work and must exclude expenses for which other federal, state, local or private relief funding has already been received:

    • Business interruption due to cancellation or indefinite postponement of paid contracts, gigs, performances, residencies, exhibitions, commissions, or other creative work that was scheduled to occur between March 1 and December 30, 2020
    • Transitioning services to alternative means (e.g. online, outdoor, limited attendance) or adaptive upgrades (e.g. software and online services) directly related to the public health emergency and necessary in the course of creating, presenting, directing, or performing works of art
    • Goods and services (e.g. personal protective equipment (PPE), signage, cleaning/sanitizing) that were unbudgeted but necessary to ensure a safe experience in the course of creating, presenting, directing, or performing works of art due to the public health emergency

    The CARES Act requires that the awarded funds only be used to cover expenses that:

    • are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19) and
    • were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 30, 2020.

    Ineligible Use of Funds
    Grant funds may not be used for any of the following expenses:

    • Expenses that were funded or reimbursed in part or whole by state unemployment insurance and/or federally-funded unemployment programs, including Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC)
    • Expenses funded or reimbursed by other state, federal, or private funding sources, including but not limited to CARES Act funding, including the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)
    • Capital expenditures, including equipment equal to or greater than $5,000 per unit
    • Damages covered by insurance
    • Foreign travel
    • Fundraisers or benefits
    • Legal settlements
    • Lobbying activity
    • Expenses for goods or services incurred outside of the eligible funding period of March 1 to December 30, 2020
    • Prizes and awards
    • Reimbursement to donors for donated items or services
    • Religious activity

    Applicants and grant recipients must adhere to all funding policies of the Iowa Arts Council.

    Funding Period
    Grant funds must be spent on eligible expenses incurred between March 1 and December 30, 2020. For an expense to be considered to have been incurred, performance or delivery must occur during the covered period. Payment of funds need not be made during that time; however, it is expected that payment will take place within 90 days of a cost being incurred. 

    Matching Requirements
    There are no matching requirements.

    Funding Disbursement
    Grant recipients will receive a contract via email for electronic signature upon notice of award decisions. Contracts will be processed upon completion and funding will be disbursed as quickly as possible through the State Accounting Enterprise which typically takes 4-5 weeks to process.

    Taxes
    Recipients should consult a tax advisor regarding the implications of grant payments on state and federal taxes.
    Funds are administered through the State of Iowa. Grant recipients who have outstanding debts to the State of Iowa will receive garnished award payments to fulfill any debts.

    Federal Funding, Records and Future Audit Requirements
    Applicants and grant recipients must adhere to all requirements outlined in the CARES Act and 2 CFR Part 200 Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, as further described below:

    • CARES Act dollars constitute a federal grant and may also be subject to federal audit.

      ◦ Grant recipients not accustomed to processing federal awards are advised to review documentation requirements; ensure that recordkeeping is in order; plan to document extensively (note: documentation may include bills, invoices, receipts, monthly financial statements, executed contracts, payroll ledgers, and other documents); and plan to carefully retain documentation for a period of at least five years. 

    • CARES Act funding from different sources may not be used to support the same expense for the same time frame (e.g. educator wages for a three-month period).

      ◦ This includes but is not limited to CARES Act funding received from the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, Iowa Economic Development Authority, Small Business Administration, Arts Midwest, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, or the Institute for Museums and Library Services.
      ◦ Grant recipients are responsible for ensuring funds received from any federal, state or local or private source, including any other grant funds received from the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, do not total more than 100% for the same eligible expense for the same time frame. Grant recipients must track and keep records of how the funds were allocated to prove that no duplication of benefits took place.
      ◦ This includes Art Project Grants, Cultural Heritage Project Grants, Cultural Leadership Partners Grant, Capacity Building Grants, Virtual Arts Experience Grants, Historic Resource Development Program Grants, Iowa Arts & Culture Emergency Relief Fund Grants.
      ◦ Applicants should consult with their own legal counsel to discuss whether any particular cost meets the eligibility criteria set forth in the CARES Act.

    • Grant recipients must maintain records associated with the use of funds for audit purposes for at least five years.

      ◦ Grant recipients receiving funding from the state should maintain records of all COVID-19 related losses and expenses, and records of any other COVID-19 relief payments received from other sources. These records should be sufficient to establish that the funds were used in a manner consistent with 42 U.S.C. 801(d). Records should be maintained for a period of five (5) years after the final expenditure of funds. The Auditor of State has authority to audit any entity or individual that receives funds from the state.
      ◦ Grant recipients must maintain appropriate records, as required by 2 CFR 200.302 (financial management), 2 CFR 200.430(i) (standards for documenting personnel expenses), and 2 CFR 200.333 (retention requirements for records) to substantiate the charging of any compensation costs related to interruption of operations or services. The grantee must have adequate records to support that the cost met the terms and conditions of the award and allowable costs/cost principles under 2 CFR 200 Subpart E (necessary and reasonable, allocable, net of credits, limitations, consistency, and where required prior written approval).
      ◦ Applicants and grant recipients retain responsibility for demonstrating eligibility of expenses, and are required to hold the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs harmless for any audit disallowance related to the eligibility of expenses, including repayment of ineligible amounts if awarded funding. 

    For further guidance, see Coronavirus Relief Fund Guidance for State, Territorial, Local, and Tribal Governments, updated September 2, 2020.

    Applicant Requirements

    Individual Iowa Artist
    Defined as an individual who earns substantial income from activities directly related to creating, presenting, directing, or performing works of art, excluding full-time or part-time employment as a Fine Arts educator in K-12 or higher education. In addition, the individual must:

    • be a legal, current resident of Iowa

      ◦ defined by Iowa Code 422.4 and Iowa Administrative Code 701.38.17 (422)
      ◦ individuals that are part of artist groups including bands, artist collaboratives and artist collectives must apply as an individual and not on behalf of the group

    • be 21 years of age or older
    • maintain a business that is physically located in Iowa
    • have incurred substantial financial loss from cancellations, closures and/or decreased customer demand as a result of the COVID-19 public health emergency

    Ineligible Applicants
    The following types of applicants are not eligible to apply:

    • Individuals working in creative disciplines that fall outside of the definition of art, including baking, balloon, barbering, burlesque, cosmetology, event planning and production, fitness, floral design, food makers, commercial and industrial welding, henna, horticulture, marketing, martial arts, massage and healing therapy, modeling, nail design, professional speaking, soap making and yoga practitioners. Additional eligibility decisions may be made at the discretion of the funding agency.
    • Event planners, managers, booking agents, promoters and similar jobs categories that support artists and artistic works but do not directly contribute to their creation.
    • Individuals enrolled in any type of degree granting program from March 1 - December 30, 2020
    • Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs grantees with an outstanding final report or who have been placed on a department funding moratorium

    Iowa Arts Council Administered Program Eligibility

    • Eligible applicants are allowed to receive one Round Four emergency grant award in addition to any previous emergency or regular grant awards made to date by the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs in calendar year 2020 
    • Applicants that have directly received funding through CARES Act programs from the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, Iowa Economic Development Authority, Small Business Administration, Arts Midwest, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, Institute for Museums and Library Services may receive funding from this grant program
    • Eligible applicants are limited to submitting one application to this program 

    Application Submission
    Applicants must submit applications via the Iowa Arts Council’s SlideRoom, an online application portal. Applications will not be accepted in any other format. Late, incomplete or ineligible applications will not be accepted. Applicants can access the current online application requirements at iowaartscouncil.slideroom.com. Applicants must create a login to view the full application requirements for the program. Applicants can visit help.liaisonedu.com for SlideRoom assistance related to the online submission.

    Review Process
    Applications are reviewed by staff for completion, eligibility and adherence to published guidelines. Applications are reviewed as submitted. New information or subsequent clarification submitted after a program deadline is not considered. Staff will also review an applicant’s record of compliance and good standing with the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, State and Federal government. Applications or applicants determined by staff to be ineligible or incomplete will not be considered for funding and are specifically denied any appeals process.

    Review Criteria
    Eligible applications will be reviewed and awarded to the extent that funding is available. To maintain equitable access to available funds, the following funding priorities will be considered:

    • Demonstration of need and actual loss of revenue
    • Artists who identify with one or more underrepresented populations, including persons of color; persons with disabilities; persons identifying as LGBTQIA+; and/or persons residing in an eligible rural county
    • Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs Grant Recipient FY 2016-2020
    • Distribution of funds throughout the state

    Grant Recipient Expectations 

    Acknowledgement
    Funding for this program is provided by the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs as directed by Governor Kim Reynolds through an appropriation to the State of Iowa through the federal CARES Act. Grant recipients will be required to acknowledge support through letters of acknowledgement to state and federal legislators, Governor Kim Reynolds and through Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs logo usage on print and digital communications.

    Final Report
    Grant recipients will be contractually obligated to complete a final report that includes documentation of use of funds and a demonstration of the impact of the funding. 

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