Eight Maine arts organizations will each receive a $50,000 federal grant to pay staff and artists and cover facilities costs.

The National Endowment for the Arts announced Wednesday that 855 arts organizations nationwide will receive a combined total of $45 million through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (or CARES) Act.

The Maine organizations receiving grants include Cultural Resources in Rockport, L.A. Public Theatre in Lewiston, Penobscot Theatre Company in Bangor, Points North Institute (Camden International Film Festival) in Camden, Portland Maine Symphony Orchestra, Portland Ovations, Portland Stage and the Telling Room in Portland.

Almost all of the organizations, including those in Maine, will receive a $50,000 grant to “support staff salaries, fees for artists or contractual personnel and facilities costs,” according to an NEA press release. Nine organizations will receive $250,000 to redistribute to other arts organizations in their area.

“All of us at the National Endowment for the Arts are keenly aware that arts organizations across the country are hurting, struggling, and trying to survive and that our supply of funding does not come close to meeting the demand for assistance,” Arts Endowment Chairman Mary Anne Carter said in the press release.