With more than $7 billion in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds allocated to Pennsylvania schools to assist them in preventing, preparing for, and responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) is requiring all entities receiving ESSER funds to report on the use of the ESSER funds.

The ESSER Funding Status Report seeks to assess the expenditures of ESSER funds, identify the interventions and activities implemented with ESSER funds, and understand planned uses of funds in the next fiscal years. This report has been developed by and is required by USDE. Completion and submission of this report is a condition of continued receipt of ESSER funds.

This federal ESSER reporting requirement applies to all school districts, charter schools, intermediate units, career and technical education centers, approved private schools, private residential rehabilitative institutions, chartered schools for the deaf and blind, and entities providing educational programs to neglected, delinquent, and at-risk youth that receive ESSER funding under any of the following federal Acts:

• Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (ESSER I)
• Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) Act (ESSER II)
• American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act (ARP ESSER)