Agenda - 11-05-20; 6-c - Emergency Housing Assistance Program Update and Request for Supplemental Funding

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include El Centro Hispano, Refugee Community Partnership, Community Home Trust, EmPOWERment, and the Community Empowerment Fund, as well as other Orange County Departments such as Family Success Alliance (Health Department), Department on Aging, and Department of Social Services (see Attachment 3). These rapid collaborative efforts and community partnerships allowed the program to serve people as they presented for assistance through the Housing Helpline and through the partner referral network – and reaching a diverse range of communities to include non-English-speaking households and families with extremely low incomes (see tables below). Table 1: EHA Funding by Income Bracket of Beneficiary AMI 30% 50% 60% 80% Grand Total Amount $1,242,140 $387,497 $56,757 $1,095 $1,687,490 Percentage 73.61% 22.96% 3.36% 0.06% 100.00% Client Count 562 171 29 1 748 Percentage 75.13% 22.86% 3.88% 0.13% 100.00% Table 2: EHA Funding by Race/Ethnicity of Beneficiary Race/Ethnicity Unidentified Asian Black Latinx Middle Eastern Multiracial Native American White Grand Total Amount $594,230 $55,420 $394,514 $460,215 $26,458 $6,088 $8,249 $142,317 $1,687,490 Percentage 35.21% 3.28% 23.38% 27.27% 1.57% 0.36% 0.49% 8.43% 100.00% Client Count 290 26 160 209 9 3 3 62 748 Percentage 38.77% 3.48% 21.39% 27.94% 1.20% 0.40% 0.40% 8.29% 100.00% Financing History: EHA was seeded with local Orange County funds for Risk Mitigation and Housing Stabilization activities and Town contributions, and later CARES funding from the Towns and County. Due to the high demand for funds caused by the COVID-19 health crisis, these funds have almost been fully expended. Since the start of the pandemic, $2.1 million has been invested by the County and Towns. As of October 20, about $276,000 remains uncommitted, which staff anticipate will last another two and a half weeks, based on the current rate of expenditure and the queue of more than 100 applications awaiting review. As such, the County sought funds from the State in order to continue the work – first through the HOPE program ($797,133) administered by NCORR and second through an application to the NC Commerce Department for Community Development Block Grant – Coronavirus (CDBG-CV) funds ($900,000). The HOPE program portion of the work began on October 19, 2020 and will end December 31, 2020 per the funding regulations, and the County hopes to hear about the CDBG-CV application for funding by the end of the year. Both of these funding sources are limited to providing only rent and utility arrears and payments. This means that the other housing stabilization activities that had been provided through other EHA funding sources are not eligible under these new programs. These stabilization activities include security and utility deposits, moving costs, and application fees all of which are important for helping residents secure housing at a time when having a stable home is crucial for staying safe and avoiding COVID exposure. Further, flexible EHA funding is needed for those residents who do not qualify for the HOPE program or CDBG-CV funds, i.e. not having required documentation for federal funds and/or landlord not agreeing to lease addendum required by the HOPE program. There is also need for urgent funds for those facing imminent eviction or who are working with the 2