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Anaheim, CA 92805
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CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
City of Anaheim
HOUSING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
DEPARTMENT
DATE: FEBRUARY 28, 2023
FROM: HOUSING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: FY 2019-2020 ANNUAL ACTION PLAN FIFTH AMENDMENT TO
REALLOCATE CORONAVIRUS AID, RELIEF, AND
ECONOMIC SECURITY (CARES) ACT FUNDS
ATTACHMENT (Y/N): YES ITEM # 05 GOVERNMENT CODE § 84308 APPLIES: NO
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council, by Motion, approve the Fifth Amendment (Fourth CARES Act Amendment), in substantial form, to the Fiscal Year 2019-2020 Annual Action Plan.
The amendment will fund two new programs that will assist the City in preventing, preparing for, and responding to COVID-19 using Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds from the CARES Act totaling $644,600 and designate the Director of Housing & Community Development, or her designee, as the Certifying Official authorized to execute all documents related to the administration, management, and implementation of the funding; and provide discretion to the Director or her designee to reallocate funds to eligible activities as deemed necessary to address greatest need.
DISCUSSION:
On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) into law, providing much needed assistance to the American people as the country works diligently to combat COVID-19. As part of the CARES Act, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) received an additional $5 billion dollars to help America’s low income families and most vulnerable. The funds were quickly awarded using existing grant formulas and accompanied by new guidance making it easier for grantees to help their communities. On April 22, 2020, staff brought forth a recommendation to the Housing and Community Development Commission (HCDC), the advisory body appointed by City Council, to approve the Second Amendment to the Annual Action Plan allocating the first round of supplemental HUD funding. Since then, HUD has allocated additional CDBG COVID funds ($4,534,509) and Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) COVID funds ($8,700,250) in the total amount of $13,234,759. In order to reallocate and expend the second allocation of supplemental funding, this Fifth Amendment to the Annual Action Plan is required.
Fifth Amendment to FY 2019-2020 Annual Action Plan
February 28, 2023
FY 2019-2020 Substantial Amendment
In July 2019, staff presented the FY 2019-2020 Annual Action Plan to the HCDC as is customary each year. Approval is necessary to complete the process to obtain CDBG, HOME, ESG, and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) funds from HUD. The Action Plan outlines the activities and expenditures proposed for the upcoming program year. Since that initial approval, staff has presented four amendments to the Action Plan. The first amendment was requested in December 2019 for the purposes of allocating funds for the newly approved Senior Safety Net program and the second amendment, requested in April 2020, was to seek approval of expenditures in connection with the first round of CDBG and ESG CARES Act funding. The third & fourth amendments were to allocate additional CARES Act funds for both CDBG and ESG that were awarded in September 2020.
CARES Act funds received to date are as follows:
First round of CARES Act funds - April 2020
The funds allocated during the first round have already been exhausted.
Second round of CARES Act funds – September 2020
Re-allocations
As the City works within the time frame of HUD’s expenditure deadlines, staff has planned for re-allocations from programs that did not expend all of their CARES Act funding by the contract term and ensure that the funds are spent in a meaningful and timely manner by the grant deadlines. The two proposed programs are the following:
Lending Circle ($29,000 CDBG-COVID)
Due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, many City of Anaheim residents faced financial hardships that affected their housing stability, consequently – facing evictions and high debt that then affected their credit. Community Action Partnership of Orange County (CAP OC) is a trusted resource for Orange County community members facing food insecurity, unemployment, economic turmoil, and other obstacles. CAP OC provides whole-family wraparound services that help people meet basic needs, overcome barriers, and develop self-sufficiency. CAP OC will work with Mission Asset Fund to develop a Lending Circles group in the City of Anaheim. Participants of the group will be recruited from established CAP OC programs, such as Financial CDBG-COVID $ 2,537,140
ESG-COVID $ 1,279,072
HOPWA- COVID $ 368,235
TOTAL $ 4,184,447
CDBG-COVID $ 4,534,509
ESG-COVID $ 8,700,250
TOTAL $ 13,234,759
Fifth Amendment to FY 2019-2020 Annual Action Plan
February 28, 2023
Empowerment and Workforce Development, that are low-income, have minimal credit history, and can utilize the benefits of a Lending Circle program.
CAP OC utilizes the Your Money, Your Goals program, designed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The program provides practical strategies and easy to understand ways to save for emergencies and obtain personal financial goals through a five-week curriculum. CAP OC provides programming through our Family Resource Centers (FRC). The organization also partners with other agencies to deliver the program. The Lending Circle is a natural next step in building credit. Participants will receive on-going case management and coaching from CAP OC staff and meet monthly as a group.
Love Anaheim Food Pantry Food Distribution ($615,600 CDBG-COVID) The City of Anaheim will mitigate food insecurity for its residents, many of which are still experiencing financial hardships due to the COVID-19 Pandemic in 2020, by contracting with Love Anaheim as they partner with Anaheim’s Community Services Department, with the help of other city departments, to set up “Anaheim Food Pantry” using their staff and facilities. Bags of nonperishable and produce items will be packed and distributed to income eligible residents each week. In total, both the Family Resource Centers (FRC) food distributions and the Church food distributions will serve about 550 families per week during the year.
The names of the FRC locations are listed below:
Downtown Anaheim Community Center, 250 E. Center St., Anaheim, CA 92805 Ponderosa Family Resource Center, 320 E. Orangewood Ave., Anaheim, CA 92802
Miraloma Family Resource Center, 2600 E. Miraloma Way, Anaheim, CA 92806
In accordance with the Citizen Participation Plan, the draft version of this Annual Action Plan Amendment was published for a public comment period of 35 days from January 12, 2023 to February 15, 2023. The Anaheim Housing and Community Development Commission held a public hearing on February 15, 2023, for review. No public comments were received on this item.
IMPACT ON BUDGET:
The Housing and Community Development Department has sufficient appropriation in its FY 2022/23 budget.
Respectfully submitted,
Grace Stepter
Director of Housing & Community
Development
Fifth Amendment to FY 2019-2020 Annual Action Plan
February 28, 2023
Attachment:
1. Fifth Amendment to FY 2019-2020 Annual Action Plan (Fourth CARES Act Amendment)