Stimulus aid to help several local agencies

STAFF REPORT

COLUMBUS — Several area communities are among those that will receive some of the $38.9 million in additional funding for the Ohio Community Services Block Grant Program through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Gov. Ted Strickland and Lisa Patt-McDaniel, interim director of the Ohio Department of Development, said the funds, administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will be allocated to local community-action agencies to provide services and activities addressing employment, emergency services and a variety of activities to combat poverty.

Area Ohio Community Services Block Grant Program grantees are: Ashtabula County Community Action, $412,267; Community Action Agency of Columbiana County, $445,661; Mahoning-Youngstown Area Community Action Council, $1,192,643; and Trumbull Community Action Program, $736,209.

Distribution of funds is expected to begin in June and continue over the next two years. Funding is contingent upon approval of the state’s Community Services Block Grant Program plan by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The Community Services Block Grant Program funds, administered by the Ohio Department of Development’s Community Development Division and its Office of Community Services, may be used to assist families and individuals whose annual household income is at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.

The community action agencies will be required to coordinate all employment-related services with the local One-Stop Career Centers, which offer free resources for job seekers.

In addition, community action agencies are encouraged to link with the Ohio Benefit Bank, a service of the Governor’s Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives.

The Ohio Benefit Bank helps connect low- and moderate-income families with services that can help them gain financial stability and security.