The Pima County Board of Supervisors approved $838,390 in emergency grants Monday to help local agencies continue providing critical services to residents facing housing, food and other basic needs.
The Short-Term Crisis and Emergency Resources grants will support 29 programs across five categories: food assistance, housing and utility support, transportation, legal services and multiple service categories.
"Our funding process was designed to ensure that agencies most impacted by recent federal changes can continue delivering essential services," said Dan Sullivan, director of the Community & Workforce Development Department.
The funding comes from rolled-over general funds from the prior fiscal year and was approved by supervisors in November. The county opened applications from Nov. 19 through Dec. 3 for agencies previously approved to receive county funds.
The Community & Workforce Development Department received 57 applications and forwarded 38 eligible requests totaling more than $3.3 million to the Outside Agency Citizen Review Committee. The committee reviewed proposals Dec. 11 and made funding recommendations to supervisors.
Food assistance programs received the largest allocation at $332,000 across 12 programs. Housing and utility support programs received $221,000 for seven programs, while multiple service category programs received $231,390 for eight programs.
Transportation services received $25,000 for one program, and legal services received $29,000 for one program.
Sullivan said the grants address immediate needs while supporting the county's Prosperity Initiative, a regional partnership working to reduce generational poverty through housing stability, transportation access and reinvestment in high-poverty neighborhoods.
The county created the emergency grants in response to federal-level developments that impacted agencies delivering critical community services. Funding will be immediately available to approved organizations.
