Miami Student

Issue date: 3/7/08 Section: Community

Butler County received an increase in federal funds for the fiscal year 2008 due to an increase in the jobless rate.

Of the more than $7 million awarded to the state of Ohio from the Emergency Food and Shelter National Board Program (EFSP), Butler County received $231,808. This is an increase of $12,848 from FY2007.

This increase, according to Tina Osso, local executive director of Shared Harvest Foodbank in Fairfield, is due to the growing number of unemployed people in Butler County.

This money will go to aid in the homeless relief effort, according to Osso.

"Supplementing and expanding efforts to shelter and feed the homeless, help those in need with rent and mortgage assistance and offer assistance in paying utilities (is of the utmost importance)," Osso said.

EFSP funds are allocated to states and counties based on statistical data, according to Sharon M. Bailey, vice president of EFSP.

"The EFSP is a formula based program which qualifies jurisdictions for funding using unemployment and poverty data," Bailey said. "Once a jurisdiction is qualified for funding, the EFSP funds are awarded based on a 12-month average number of unemployed individuals."

The EFSP was created in 1983 to help local service organizations, both private and governmental, provide for people in need of emergency assistance.

Once the money is received in Butler County, a local board is convened to review requests for funding from local agencies. The local board is comprised of representatives from the three United Ways in Butler County, the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, the Jewish Federation, Catholic Social Services, Butler County Job & Family Services, Community Action Program SELF, Butler County Emergency Management Agency, Hope House Shelter and Shared Harvest Foodbank, Osso said.

These representatives then oversee the application process as local agencies complete an application and request for funding. This includes what category and program they are requesting funding for, as well as how much support they need. The EFSP funding is open to any qualifying agency that is dedicated to helping the hungry, sheltering the homeless or that provides assistance with rent, mortgage and utility needs.

"(In Butler County in 2007), over 52,000 meals were provided for hungry people, nearly 5,900 nights of shelter were provided for the homeless, almost 70 families received help with rent or mortgage payments, preventing evictions or foreclosures, and 120 families received help with utility payments preventing utility shut offs," Osso said.

While the local EFSP board won't know how much can be done with Phase 26 until allocations are made, Osso said the county will always need more money.

"There is never enough money to meet the need of families in Butler County," Osso said. "With rising energy prices, wages and income families are not keeping up with the cost of living. People, who were just making it last year, are now standing in food pantry lines or seeking help to pay utility, rent or mortgage bills."

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