REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Determine Priority Needs for Human Services for Fiscal Years 2015-16 and 2016-17 and Supplemental Funding Amount for Fiscal Year 2015-16
Report
BACKGROUND
The City provides grants to eligible human services agencies on a competitive basis pursuant to Council Policy 5.1.3: Human Services, originally adopted in 1981, and amended in 1999 and 2006. Eligible human service agencies are those providing assistance programs for lower-income clients (those with a household income of less than 80% of area median income), such as food, legal services, health care, literacy classes, child care, and so on. Most of the clients served by these programs are seniors, people with disabilities, very low income families with children, and homeless people. Historically the City has used a portion of its annual Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) from the federal government to fund these grants, although in more recent years, City General funds have also been used.
Applications for the human services grants are solicited every other year, following hearings held by the Housing and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and Council to determine the City's current "priority human service needs." Grants are awarded conditionally for a two-year period, with the second-year grants conditioned on several factors, such as successful completion of the grant activity in the first year, compliance with applicable CDBG regulations, and availability of funding for the second year.
The priority needs are those identified through this hearing process as most deserving of the City's funds designated for human services. The total amount of funding requested usually exceeds the amount available by a factor of 2 or more, so it is helpful to let applicants know what the priorities are, so they may determine if their programs are likely to succeed in getting a grant through the City's funding opportunity. Programs that address needs other than the ident...
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