February 3, 2021
Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. is announcing today a food assistance program that will provide funding awards to area food agencies in support of their efforts to minimize hunger amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Specifically, Ordinance 5483 authorizes $500,000 of federal CARES Act monies be allocated to County Executive White’s program, which allows eligible food agencies to purchase and distribute food and other necessities to Jackson County residents. Food agencies interested in receiving funding can apply and, if approved, receive an award amount of up to $30,000.
“The unanimous support of the County Legislature for this program is a clear indication that hunger is not a partisan issue, but an issue of humanity, dignity and compassion,” said Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. “Together, we remain steadfast in our commitment to provide any support we can to ensure our residents can take care of themselves and their families during this challenging time. No one should have to worry about where their next meal is coming from and it is my hope that making these dollars available will ease that burden for those in need in Jackson County.”
Starting today, food agencies can apply for funding using the online application on the Jackson County website. There, they can also find qualification and eligibility requirements. The deadline to apply for funding is March 3, 2021.
All recommendations for funding through the application process will be submitted to the County Legislature for final approval. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Jackson County has allocated $1.8 million to combat hunger in the community.
On March 27, Congress passed and the president signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which established a new $150 billion Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) for state, county and municipal governments with populations of over 500,000 people to address necessary expenditures incurred due to the COVID-19 public health emergency. Accordingly, Jackson County received $122,669,998.30, which may only be used to cover costs that:
- Are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19); and
- Were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020 (the date of enactment of the CARES Act); and
- Were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020 and ends on December 31, 2021.[i]
[i] Congress recently adopted the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 extending the deadline for the expenditure of CARES Act funds. https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/hr133/BILLS-116hr133enr.pdf
