Emergency Grant for Independent Artists

Between FY20 - 23, the Emergency Grant supported the needs of independent artists as they adjusted to income losses as a result of the pandemic and other emergencies.

This program is paused for our current fiscal year, FY24.

The Emergency Grants program developed very quickly in FY20 at the beginning of the pandemic in response to Maryland’s COVID State of Emergency. We were able to continue the program for independent artists through FY23 with dedicated funding totaling just over $13 million. 

While the need for artists to have access to funding for emergency situations is clear, MSAC does not have the dedicated funding or staffing capacity to continue this program in FY24. The Council and staff are determined to investigate how our agency can best address artists’ emergency needs through funding, connection to resources, and collaborations during our upcoming strategic planning, which will kick off in late 2023. 

In the meantime, you can click here to see our compiled list of emergency resources for artists as well as emergency preparedness resources for organizations. Scroll down to the “Emergency Resources for Artists” section.

Please note that after an extensive program-building effort and successful pilot of Grants for Artists program will continue in FY24. Application details will be shared soon. 

Other funding opportunities available to independent artists can be found on the list here.

If any debt is owed to the State of Maryland by the grantee, the amount owed will be subtracted by the General Accounting Division prior to the disbursement of grant funds. If a grantee's liability exceeds the grant award, the liability will be reduced by the award amount, but the grantee will receive no grant funds.

All MSAC grants are paid on the same timeline. To learn more, click here.

If awarded an Emergency Grant, the grantee must file a final report online through Smart Simple by August 15, 2023.

See the Grant Guidelines for full reporting requirements.

The linked documents include Emergency Grants for both Arts Organizations and Independent Artists.

FY 2023
FY 2022
FY 2021 (Roster artists)
FY 2021 (Round 4)
FY 2021 (Round 3)
FY 2021 (Round 2)
FY 2020 (Round 1)