Typically, students who apply ED are not given merit awards. There are some colleges who do give merit ED. There are also some colleges that will tell you before applying how much merit money you might get.
The issue is often that if the student applies ED, there is no incentive for the college to entice the student with a merit award. They know the student is committed to attending, regardless of the cost.
Read this: Early decision, merit money
Run the NPC before applying.