School districts, county offices of education, or charter schools, collectively known as LEAs, that receive Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds under the American Rescue Plan Act, referred to as ESSER III funds, are required to develop a plan for how they will use their ESSER III funds. In the plan, an LEA must explain how it intends to use its ESSER III funds to address students’ academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs, as well as any opportunity gaps that existed before, and were worsened by, the COVID-19 pandemic. An LEA may also use its ESSER III funds in other ways, as detailed in the Fiscal Requirements section of the Instructions. In developing the plan, the LEA has flexibility to include community input and/or actions included in other planning documents, such as the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP), provided that the input and actions are relevant to the LEA’s Plan to support students.

ESSER III Plan