Community Action Council is a valued partner in getting donated funds to those in need

The Olympian’s May 3 editorial commented on the speed with which the Community Action Council of Lewis, Mason, and Thurston Counties (CAC) has been able to administer emergency funds for rent, utility and mortgage assistance to Thurston County residents feeling the economic impacts of COVID-19.

As stated in the editorial, CAC had received $100,000 thus far from the Thurston County COVID-19 Response Fund established by United Way of Thurston County and the Community Foundation of South Puget Sound. In the editorial, it was referenced that, as of April 22, only $36,000 had been distributed.

At the time of this writing, of the initial $100,000 that we have provided, CAC has allocated or disbursed $101,219 in assistance. Of that, $46,731 has been distributed directly to the landlords or entities to whom they are owed, and $54,488 is pending distribution. Often, CAC staff are simply waiting on a document, such as a W-9 from a landlord or other necessary information to close a request, but the request has already been qualified and approved, and the funds are considered to be “allocated,” but not yet “disbursed.”

Through the Thurston County COVID-19 Response Fund, we expect to provide additional funds to CAC in order to continue meeting these essential needs.

These emergency funds were designed to be as low barrier as possible, and the eligibility criteria are less restrictive than most other rental assistance programs.

We allocated these funds to CAC through the COVID-19 Fund because it was clear that this pandemic would cause a great many people in our community to need additional support. In a matter of weeks, CAC saw a significant increase in the number of calls they received. In a typical month, CAC receives 50-60 calls for rent assistance. In the month of April alone, they had 370 calls specifically for COVID-19 assistance to help with rent. In addition to their normal full-time workload, CAC is now also managing hundreds of new, additional requests from people who may never before have had to navigate these social safety nets.

Nevertheless, CAC’s staff is doing exactly what they are expected to do: They are helping those in need with dedication and compassion while also acting as excellent stewards of the funds they have been given. They are administering the limited emergency assistance funds to ensure that the people who access those funds reside in the county, meet the basic income requirements and that funds are correctly distributed directly to the landlord/lender or other entity to which they are owed.

So many in our community – nonprofits, businesses, local governments, and volunteers – are working hard to help every person survive this unprecedented event. We will continue to improve our systems to better respond to the enormity of the current crisis. And we will continue to do all we can to raise funds for this effort and for the benefit of our community.

United Way and the Community Foundation deeply appreciate the enormous support and generosity of this community as we all focus our efforts on responding to and recovering from the health and economic impacts of this virus. CAC is a trusted partner in this work, and we are grateful to be able to work with them to provide much-needed assistance to our friends and neighbors.