Explanation
BACKGROUND: This legislation authorizes the Director of Development to enter into a Beneficiary Grant Agreement with Community Shelter Board (CSB), a non-profit corporation, in an amount up to $9,467,191.00 of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to provide operating support for CSB’s Emergency Shelter Program and to pay for expenses starting January 1, 2024.
Ordinance 1201-2021 authorized the City of Columbus to accept and appropriate approximately $187,030,138.00 of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds as signed into law by the President of the United States on March 11, 2021.
CSB provides emergency shelters for men, women, and children. Once in shelter, in addition to providing a secure, clean place to stay, emergency shelter programs provide meals, rehousing services, physical and behavioral healthcare, material assistance, referrals, and employment services. Shelters operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Children staying at the family shelters are supervised in an age-appropriate environment where they participate in developmental activities, receive homework help, childcare, and health services. The shelters that will receive these funds include Lutheran Social Services-Faith Mission, Maryhaven Engagement Center, Southeast Inc.-Friends of the Homeless, YWCA Family Center, and the YMCA Van Buren Center.
CSB and partners leverage significant additional funding from multiple sources to operate emergency homeless shelters. Surge funding from the City of Columbus in 2021, 2022, and 2023 helped the shelter partners to fill budget gaps and attract/retain high quality staff. This funding will assist with funding shelter operations in 2024, including, but not limited to: raising the minimum wage to $21/hour to intake staff, front line engagement staff, and case management staff in emergency shelters
CSB and the shelter system has been negatively impacted by COVID-19 by reduced funding from other sources, higher than pre-COVID levels of service needs, and higher than pre-COVID expenses for following the Centers for Disease Control guidance about social distancing.
A portion of the funding will be used for food expenses as the shelter system does provide meals. It is estimated that less than $20,000.00 will be used for meal costs. Costs will not exceed $15 per person and any purchase of alcohol is strictly prohibited.
Emergency action is requested in order to avoid any disruption of services at emergency shelters.
FISCAL IMPACT: Funding is provided to the City of Columbus from the American Rescue Plan Act passed by Congress and signed into law March 11, 2021.
Title
To authorize the Director of Development to enter into a Beneficiary Grant Agreement with Community Shelter Board in an amount up to $9,467,191.00 of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to provide operating support for CBS’s Emergency Shelter Program and to pay for expenses starting January 1, 2024; and to authorize the expenditure of up to $9,467,191.00 of ARPA funds; and to declare an emergency. ($9,467,191.00)
Body
WHEREAS, CSB provides emergency shelters for men, women, and children and the shelters operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; and
WHEREAS, surge funding from the City of Columbus in 2021, 2022, and 2023 helped the shelter partners to fill budget gaps and attract/retain high quality staff and this funding will assist with funding shelter operations in 2024; and
WHEREAS, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in negative impacts on not-for-profit organizations by reducing traditional funding sources, increasing service needs, and increasing expenses; and
WHEREAS, expenditure of ARPA funding to support negatively impacted not-for-profits is necessary to alleviate the negative impacts caused by the COVID-19 public health emergency; and
WHEREAS, such expenditure of funds has not been previously accounted for in the 2024 Budget; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily operation of the Department of Development in that it is immediately necessary to authorize the Director to enter into a beneficiary grant agreement with Community Shelter Board to provide operating support for CBS’s Emergency Shelter Program, in order to preserve the health, welfare, and safety of residents; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
SECTION 1. That the Director of the Department of Development is authorized to enter into a Beneficiary Grant Agreement with Community Shelter Board (CSB) in an amount up to $9,467,191.00 of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to provide operating support for CBS’s Emergency Shelter Program, to pay for expenses starting January 1, 2024, and to pay for meals as part of the shelter program.
SECTION 2. That for the purpose stated in Section 1, the expenditure of $9,467,191.00 or so much thereof as may be needed, is hereby authorized in Fund 2209 (ARPA), Dept-Div 44-01 (Administration Development), in object class 05 (Other) per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 3. That the funds necessary to carry out the purpose of this ordinance are hereby deemed appropriated and the City Auditor shall establish such accounting codes as necessary.
SECTION 4. That the City Auditor is authorized to make any accounting changes to revise the funding source for all contracts or contract modifications associated with this ordinance.
SECTION 5. For the reasons stated in the Preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this Ordinance is hereby declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after passage and approval by the Mayor or ten days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.