A new grant from the federal government will help Arlington County provide rental assistance, and the county is also taking new steps to provide relief for borrowers of affordable housing loans.

The Arlington County Board announced Tuesday it accepted a $20.7M federal grant from the CARES Act to support county programs and services affected by the pandemic.

Among the beneficiaries of the grant will be residents who need assistance paying their monthly rent, the board said. It will also provide broadband internet access for public school students in need, support food banks, buy personal protective equipment for healthcare workers and establish COVID-19 testing sites.

"This welcome and much-needed grant from the federal government will help us provide the emergency food and housing assistance that those in our community who have lost their livelihoods to the pandemic so desperately need," Arlington County Board Chair Libby Garvey said in a release.

In another move to help the housing market, the Arlington County Board Saturday approved a measure to allow borrowers using the county's affordable housing loan program to waive their 2020 loan payments if they use the money to address rent losses caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

"For many low- and moderate-income renters in Arlington, this is a time of terrifying uncertainty," Garvey said. "This waiver will help our affordable housing landlords help their tenants by eliminating late-payment fees and agreeing not to evict their tenants who can't pay rent through the end of this year."