DATE: December 4, 2018
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBMITTED BY: Delfino E. Neira, Director, Department of Social Services
SUBJECT: Disaster CalFresh Mutual Aid Memorandum of Understanding
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
TITLE
Approve and authorize the Chairman to execute a Memorandum of Understanding with valley regional counties to formalize protocols for Disaster CalFresh mutual aid support and services, effective upon execution through October 31, 2022, which includes a three-year base agreement and one optional one-year extension ($0).
REPORT
Approval of the recommended action satisfies the requirement created through the Community Resiliency and Disaster Preparedness Act of 2017 (Assembly Bill 607) and outlined in the Welfare and Institutions Code section 18917(a)(2) to participate in a Disaster CalFresh mutual aid region consisting of two or more counties. The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is written with purposefully flexible language to (1) grant counties the leeway necessary to seek assistance from and respond to the unique circumstances of each declared disaster and (2) prevent counties from obligating themselves to requests they cannot fulfill. Additionally, participation in the MOU does not preclude the county from seeking disaster assistance from a county not participating in the MOU. The MOU’s provisions relate to the operation of a Disaster CalFresh program, which occurs only after the President of the United States has made a declaration for individual assistance in the affected disaster area. This item is countywide.
ALTERNATIVE ACTION(S):
There is no viable alternative action. The Department must participate in a mutual aid region prior to the submission of the Federal Fiscal Year 2020 Disaster CalFresh plan in 2019.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no increase in Net County Cost associated with the recommended action. There is no cost associated with the MOU itself and approval of the recommended action does not obligate the Department to provide disaster assistance to another county. However, per the provisions of the MOU and consistent with previously-established practice, the county receiving assistance shall reimburse the supporting county for all associated costs of both personnel and technical support. The administrative costs of Disaster CalFresh are the same as regular CalFresh - 50% Federal, 35% State, and 15% County share.
DISCUSSION:
The Disaster CalFresh program, known as the Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP) at the Federal level, provides temporary food assistance for households affected by a natural disaster. The program may only operate when the President of the United States has declared that the area has experienced a Major Disaster with Individual Disaster Assistance. The Disaster CalFresh program enables the issuance of replacement benefits for CalFresh households experiencing food loss due to the disaster and new or increased benefits for households impacted or displaced by the disaster. The county experiencing a disaster may also seek a waiver allowing the purchase of hot foods. Individuals benefiting from the Disaster CalFresh program include both existing CalFresh recipients and households with no prior social services aid. The Department has established plans for both requesting assistance during a disaster and providing aid to another county during a disaster while maintaining existing operations in our own Department.
During a disaster, county welfare departments may experience a lack of staff, facilities, computers, telephones, or internet connectivity, hindering the department’s ability to provide eligibility determinations for Disaster CalFresh to the residents of their county. These limitations are magnified by the higher-than average need for services from county residents. Once the President declares a disaster, the affected county’s welfare director may seek assistance from any other amenable county by identifying the type and duration of help needed. The assisting county then provides the help and documents any resources and time spent. If needed, the assisting county is reimbursed for the expenses incurred.
The recommended MOU was developed by the ten participating counties - Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, Stanislaus, and Tulare - and deviates from the County’s standard contract language.
ATTACHMENTS INCLUDED AND/OR ON FILE:
On file with Clerk - Mutual Aid MOU with Valley Regional Counties
CAO ANALYST:
Ronald Alexander