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MINUTES <br />ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF SOCIAL SERVICES <br />October 21, 2013 <br />2 <br />$350,000-$400,000 per month so it is a greater risk if funds are not received. <br /> <br />Ms. Coston added the scariest part was about things that did not happen but could have like <br />suspension of Work First payments and Food and Nutrition Services benefits. <br /> <br />Claire Millar asked whether North Carolina was the only state that suspended Work First. Ms. <br />Coston responded that she was unsure how many states began the process of suspending <br />programs. <br /> <br />Ms. Millar also asked whether this caused a lot more work for staff. Ms. Coston responded that <br />there was a lot of work on the part of managers to develop contingency plans, but that most staff <br />were not impacted. <br /> <br />Cheryl Young asked whether anyone actually lost child care during this. Ms. Coston responded <br />that her understanding was that nobody lost slots and staff are working to get these families back <br />into their child care centers. <br /> <br />Ms. Coston also noted that the Commissioners asked that she come back to present on <br />sequestering and the shutdown to discuss financial impacts to the county. <br /> <br />Pat Garavaglia added we are fortunate to be in Orange County instead of some of the counties that <br />had to end services immediately due to lack of funding. Ms. Coston noted that some counties <br />receive interim payments and losing those has an immediate impact on their ability to run programs. <br /> <br />2. ACA/NC FAST <br /> <br />Lindsey Shewmaker presented on the current progress of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and NC <br />FAST. NC FAST is moving along and staff are now entering most applications into the system. <br /> <br />Nancy Coston commented on the increased need for food for families as the agency continues <br />putting more information into NC FAST. Since some families have needed food for several weeks <br />while benefits are being processed, a variety of food is preferable. Claire Millar asked whether <br />more food from PORCH was needed. Ms. Coston responded that PORCH food will be needed <br />through the first of the year. She added that the food pantries have been great in working with the <br />agency to help families receive food. <br /> <br />Pat Garavaglia asked whether there had been issues with access to the federal website for ACA. <br />Ms. Coston responded that there have been access issues and added that giving access to the <br />plans without needing to use an account to login has been helpful. <br /> <br />3. Flood Update <br /> <br />Denise Shaffer informed the Board that twenty-four cases are completely finished while sixty-five <br />families have been approved. Claire Millar asked whether there were any happy stories. Ms. <br />Shaffer responded that families have been very appreciative of the assistance. There are a few <br />families who appear not to have applied for state aid and are in serious need. Staff are trying to <br />work with FRIENDS and others to assist these families. Cheryl Young asked whether there was a <br />hard deadline. Ms. Shaffer responded that the deadline was September 13, 2013 to apply for state <br />aid. Some of the families in public housing received assistance from the Town of Chapel Hill in the <br />immediate aftermath and did not apply for other services timely. Pat Garavaglia noted that she had <br />received a call from an apartment complex that could help with repairs. Ms. Shaffer responded that <br />Rocky Brook would be a good place to begin. Ms. Garavaglia added a thank you to Jonathan