The Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund, part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provides funding to address higher education challenges created by the COVID‐19 pandemic. Of the funding we received, 50% will be directed to emergency financial aid grants for student cost of attendance, food, housing, course materials, technology, health care, and child care. The other 50% will be directed to the institution to defray operational expenses related to the impact of COVID-19. The funds cannot be used for endowments, athletic or religious facilities, or enrollment recruitment contractors.
The CARES Act was signed into law on March 27, 2020. The Act provides nearly $14 billion in aid to address higher education challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Of this amount, $12.6 billion was allocated directly to colleges and universities. The allocation to UC Berkeley was $30,440,627
The well-being and health of our students, staff, and faculty are our top priority. To comply with reporting requirements and to offer transparency to our community, we are providing details about our use of these funds.
Student portion
To support our students’ financial well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of California Berkeley is providing emergency financial aid grants to eligible undergraduate and graduate students from the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund, part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
On April 10, 2020, the University of California Berkeley signed and returned to the Department of Education the Certification and Agreement for Higher Education Emergency Relief Funding and intends to use no less than 50 percent of the funds received under § 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students.
The university has received $15,220,314 from the Department pursuant to the institution’s Certification and Agreement for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students.
The total amount of Emergency Financial Aid Grants distributed to students under § 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act, the total number of students who have received an Emergency Financial Aid Grant to Students under § 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act, and the estimated total number of students eligible to participate in programs under § 484 in Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and thus eligible to receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students under § 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act are available on Financial Aid and Scholarships’ COVID-19 CARES Act Emergency Financial Aid Grants page.
The Financial Aid and Scholarships Office team collaborated with campus partners, including the Division of Equity and Inclusion, the Graduate Division, student government leaders, and the Student Advocate’s Office, to award and distribute these funds. Payments were sent out to students on Thursday, May 7. The IRS website FAQs provide guidance related to exclusion of these payments as gross income for tax reporting purposes, as they are considered qualified disaster relief payments under section 139 of the Internal Revenue Code. Likewise, expenses paid with this funding cannot be claimed as deductions. More information is available on the Financial Aid and Scholarship Office website.
The university used the following methods to determine which students receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants and how much they receive under § 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
Undergraduate students
Undergraduate students at the institution eligible to participate in programs under § 484 in the Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 Students, who were actively enrolled as of May 1, 2020, with financial need greater than $500 based on the 2019-20 aid application, who had not already received emergency funding or a cash housing refund greater than $1,000 were awarded funding to cover expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to the COVID-19 crisis. The grant amounts each undergraduate student received are based on Expected Family Contribution (EFC) as reflected on the 2019–20 aid application.
| EFC | Grant Amount |
|---|---|
| $0 | $1,300 |
| $1-$2,500 | $1,200 |
| $2,501-$5,000 | $1,100 |
| $5,001-$7,500 | $950 |
| $7,501-$10,000 | $750 |
| >$10,000 | $500 |
Graduate students
Graduate students at the institution eligible to participate in programs under § 484 in the Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 Students, who were actively enrolled as of May 15, 2020, with financial need greater than $1,000 based on the 2019-20 or 2020-21 aid application, who had not already received emergency funding or a cash housing refund greater than $1,000 were awarded funding to cover expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to the COVID-19 crisis. Graduate student awards are $1,000.
Students receiving these funds are sent this CARES Act funding email notification.
Additional funding: May be awarded on a case-by-case basis to undergraduate and graduate students who have submitted a Cost of Attendance Adjustment Request for additional expenses that have resulted from the COVID-19 emergency and the move to remote instruction.
Institutional portion
Of the $30,440,627 allocated to UC Berkeley as part of the CARES Act, $15,220,313 was awarded to the institution to defray operational expenses related to the impact of COVID-19. From the $15,220,313 of the institutional portion, $13,391,572 was spent through the period ending September 30, 2020. This amount was spent on reimbursement for room and board and other fees. The balance of $1,828,741 will be spent by May of 2021. Read the quarterly reporting form below for more information on the institutional portion of the CARES Act funding.
UC Berkeley Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Quarterly Reporting – October 28, 2020
This report covers the reporting period ending September 30, 2020.