Emergency Food and Shelter Program, Phase 39 and ARPA-R

Application Timeline and Instructions for EFSP

Media Release

(Please scroll to the bottom to download the application and instruction packets.)

Contact: Angela Hogan at Gulf Coast Partnership (941) 626-0220

The Emergency Food and Shelter Program National Board has selected Charlotte County to receive $29,028 in Phase 39 and $89,317 in Phase ARPA-R to supplement emergency food and shelter programs in the county and are not intended as the primary or reoccurring source of funding. This program is administered locally by the Gulf Coast Partnership.

The Local Board is charged with distributing funds appropriated by Congress to help expand the capacity of food and shelter programs in high-need areas around the country. Members of the Local Board will determine how funds awarded to Charlotte County are to be distributed among the emergency food and shelter programs run by local service agencies in the area.

The Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) was created, in 1983, by Congress to help meet the needs of hungry and homeless people throughout the United States and its territories by allocating federal funds for the provision of food and shelter. The program is governed by a National Board composed of representatives of the American Red Cross; Catholic Charities, USA; The Jewish Federations of North America; National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA; The Salvation Army; and United Way Worldwide. The national board is chaired by a representative of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Since inception, the national program has disbursed over $5.67 billion to over 14,000 local providers in more than 2,500 counties and cities. Funds from EFSP are distributed to each county in the United States based on its current population size, unemployment rate, and poverty rate. EFSP finds are Federal Funds made available through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Under the terms of the grant from the National Board, local agencies chosen to receive funds must provide services in Charlotte County and must meet the following criteria:

• Be a 501(c)(3) non-profit or agency in good standing with the IRS
• Be eligible to receive Federal funds
• Have an accounting system and ability to accept EFT payments
• Have a valid Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN)
• Have a Data Universal Number System (DUNS) number issued by Dun & Bradstreet
• Practice non-discrimination (agencies with a religious affiliation, will not refuse service to a client based on religion, nor engage in religious proselytizing or religious counseling in any program receiving Federal funds)
• Have the capacity to deliver emergency programs
• Have a board that meets at least quarterly
• Not have any outstanding compliance issues with the National FEMA-EFSP program from a prior phase of funding.

Qualifying agencies are urged to apply. Agencies interested in applying for Emergency Food and Shelter Program funds should download the form from the Gulf Coast Partnership at www.gulfcoastpartnership.org and return the completed application with attachments via email to angela.hogan@gulfcoastpartnership.org. The deadline for applications to be received by the Gulf Coast Partnership is Thursday, April 14, 2022, by 4:00pm.