For City Council Meeting August 13, 2024
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: G. Michael Milhiser, Interim City Manager
AUTHOR: Cynthia Alvarado, Director of Parks, Recreation & Community Services
Title
Request City Council to: 1) Review and Update the City’s CDBG-CV Programs and Funding Guidelines; and; 2) Provide Staff Direction on initiating an application period for the distribution of CDBG-CV funding to community service organizations.
(ACTION)
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council 1) Review and Update the City’s CDBG-CV Programs and Funding Guidelines; and; 2) Provide Staff Direction on initiating an application period for the distribution of CDBG-CV funding to community service organizations
BACKGROUND
On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), which appropriates nearly $2 trillion nationwide for COVID-19 pandemic relief funding. $5 billion of these CARES Act funds, referred to in this report as CDBG-CV funds, were appropriated to the Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG) to assist state and local governments in their COVID-19 response.
CDBG CARES Funding Background
The CDBG program is a federally funded program of HUD that provides funding for housing, community facilities, and public services. On April 2, 2020, HUD announced the allocation of the first $2 billion in CARES Act funding for current CDBG grantees. The CARES Act builds on features of the existing CDBG program as well as precedent set by CDBG Disaster Response (CDBG-DR) supplemental appropriations. The act directs HUD to administer these funds, pursuant to Section 106 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5306). This provision calls for HUD to allocate the supplemental funds to CDBG grantees -including eligible local governments, states, and insular areas - proportional to their conventional Fiscal Year 2020 CDBG allocation, as published by HUD in April 2020.
CDBG-CV funding is intended to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus based on public health needs, risk of transmission of coronavirus, number of coronavirus cases compared to the national average, and economic and housing market disruptions. The remaining funds will be distributed to states and units of local government on a rolling basis, at the discretion of the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, with formula factors to be defined by HUD.
The City received $1,339,584 in Supplemental Community Development Block Grant Coronavirus (CDBG-CV) funding to help prepare, prevent, and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The City amended their 2020-2021 Annual Action Plan to allocate funds to programs and activities throughout the City to help struggling residents in the community. In June 2021, The City initiated and implemented the CDBG-CV programs as follows:
|
Activity |
Allocation |
|
Rental/Mortgage Assistance |
$ 600,000.00 |
|
Utility Assistance |
$ 300,000.00 |
|
Store Front Small Business Assistance |
$ 200,000.00 |
|
PPE for Seniors |
$ 25,260.00 |
|
Workforce Development |
$ 114,324.00 |
|
COVID TESTING |
$ 100,000.00 |
|
TOTAL: |
$ 1,339,584.00 |
Over the course of two years, several substantial amendments were approved to meet the changing needs of the community. On May 9, 2023, City Council approved Substantial Amendment No. 6 appropriating $1,339,584 of CDBG-CV funds to the below programs as follows:
|
ActivityAllocation |
|
|
Rental/Mortgage/Utility Assistance |
$ 560,000.00 |
|
Store Front Small Business Assistance |
$ 200,000.00 |
|
Food Insecurity Program |
$ 100,000.00 |
|
PPE & Hot Meals for Seniors |
$ 25,260.00 |
|
Workforce Development (NCNW) |
$ 57,162.00 |
|
Social Work Action Group (SWAG) |
$ 197,162.00 |
|
Warming Center |
$ 200,000.00 |
|
Total |
$ 1,339,584.00 |
The City’s CDBG Ad-Hoc Committee held a public meeting on July 18, 2024. The Ad-Hoc subcommittee, comprising of Mayor Robertson and Council Member Trujillo, received a status update on the current CDBG-CV programs and funds. During the meeting, they discussed the potential reprogramming of funds. The overview of the current CDBG-CV funding activity allocation included a summary of each program’s current allocation and expenditures to date as follows:
The City has until February 2027 to expend the CDBG-CV funds. The following outlines eligible uses for CDBG-CV funds:
• Rehabilitation of public facility or park infrastructure to include:
§ Broadband: wiring, fiber optic cables, permanently fixed equipment to provide broadband internet access in low-moderate income area
§ HVAC improvements to prevent COVID spread, plumbing upgrades to improve sanitation
§ Creation or improvement of outdoor space for social distancing
§ Touchless water fountains, automatic doors
• Outdoor Recreation Facilities
§ Provide additional space for outdoor activity.
§ Purchase and install new gates, removal of architectural barriers that restrict access for elderly or disabled persons.
• Redesign of public sidewalks to encourage social distancing
• Funding additional public services that carryout activities that prepare, respond, or prevent COVID.
§ Homeless outreach
§ Mental health services
§ Food banks
• Administration Costs for CDBG-CV
ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION
During the Ad-Hoc meeting, several key topics and potential amendments were discussed. These discussions are critical to refining the recommendations for Amendment 7, which aims to enhance and update current policies. Staff now seeks Council's input on these topics to ensure alignment with Council's priorities and to prepare a comprehensive Amendment 7 to be brought forward at a later date.
Recommendation to Amend Store Front Small Business Assistance Program Guidelines:
During the July 18th Ad-Hoc Meeting the status of the Store Front Small Business Assistance Program was discussed. This is an active program that has a total of five (5) applications under review with an anticipated expenditure of $46,000. However, applicants are experiencing difficulty meeting the eligibility requirements per the current program guidelines. Amending the program guidelines will allow applicants to demonstrate a loss of income for an extended period of time - thus, increasing the number of approved applicants. The current and proposed guidelines are as follows:
Current Guidelines (located on page 4 of guidelines of attachment)
Proposed Amended Guidelines - The recommended changes are to extend the quarter out to 2023, please see amendment below.
Recommendation to Initiate an Application Period for Community Service Organizations
During the recent Ad-Hoc Committee meeting, members discussed the potential for opening an application period to allocate funds to community service organizations. Applications would be solicited and reviewed in alignment with the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Subrecipient process.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The request is not a Project as defined by Section 15378 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY
Guiding Principle 3: Our Government will lead by example, and will operate in an open, transparent, and responsive manner that meets the needs of the citizens and is a good place to do business.
LEGAL REVIEW
The City Attorney's Office has reviewed the staff report.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Operating Budget Impact
There is no impact to the City’s Budget.
Capital Improvement Budget Impact
There is no impact to the Capital Improvement Budget.
Licensing
There are no licensing agreements needed for this item.