The city is launching the Duval Care Coalition, JEA is waiving late fees on utility payments and City Council member Rahman Johnson is looking at ways Jacksonville can provide emergency financial aid that would help fill the void caused by the federal government shutdown’s cutback in SNAP payments that 57,000 Duval County households use to put food on the table.
Mayor Donna Deegan and City Council member Ken Amaro were joined Nov. 5 by nonprofits that provide food assistance and two SNAP recipients for the announcement of the Duval Care Coalition. The city created a one-stop online site where people who need assistance can seek it and also ways residents can offer donations.
Amaro said after the initial surprise of learning that one in five households in his Arlington-based council district receive SNAP benefits, he thought of the long lines he’s seen at neighborhood churches providing food assistance.
“The loss of SNAP benefits has left many, many families facing difficult choices,” Amaro said. “I can see parents skipping meals so their children can eat, I can see seniors stretching every dollar, choosing between the cost of medicine or the cost of food. The pain and the fear is real.”
Here are ways the city is responding to the impact of the prolonged federal government shutdown and the first shutdown-related hit on SNAP benefits since the federal program began in 1964.
Deegan says many families pushed to ‘breaking point’
Deegan said about 57,000 Duval County households rely on SNAP — the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — that covers about 160,000 residents with an average benefit worth $190 per month. Eight in 10 of the SNAP recipients are children or elderly.
“Rising prices, stagnant wages and the recent federal shutdown have all pushed many families to the breaking point,” she said.
She said community food pantries likewise are straining to meet the demand has tripled for some of them.
Duval Care Coalition shows how to get and give help
The newly formed Duval Care Coalition is made up of faith leaders, non-profit organizations and community partners “on the front lines of hunger relief,” Deegan said.
She said they are coordinating with Feeding Northeast Florida and other organizations to replenish shelves of food banks and mobile pantries.
The city created an online site that provides contact information for organizations in the Duval Care Coalition where people can get assistance.
“It also offers ways to donate if you are in a position to help and we’ve had a lot of people ask about that,” Deegan said.
Residents also can call the United Way’s helpline at 2-1-1 for food resources.
Council member Johnson exploring ways of city to provide funding
The announcement of the Duval Care Coalition didn’t come with any additional city of Jacksonville funding beyond what the city already provides for programs such as Meals on Wheels.
Deegan said the first step is to get the coalition formed and she’s open to discuss how the city might put up money for the effort.
“I’ve said very often we can’t be that answer to everything, but if there’s a quality of life issue in our community that is not being addressed by the private sector, that’s our job to address that issue for our citizens,” she said.
City Council member Rahman Johnson has been exploring ways the can can put money into the effort to support people affected by the SNAP curtailment. He has scheduled a meeting at 10 a.m. Nov. 7 to discuss it with fellow council members.
He said his goal is to file legislation that City Council could take up as an emergency at its Nov. 12 meeting.
JEA halts late fees and offers more time for bill payments
JEA is giving customers more time to pay their utility bills while dealing with the government shutdown’s impacts.
“We know many Jacksonville families are facing financial hardship, and JEA is working to help ease the burden for our customers in need,” JEA Managing Director and CEO Vickie Cavey said in the utility’s announcement.
JEA says it is easing the requirements for customers to qualify for payment extensions and payment arrangements so more customers can pay the balances on their bills in a series of monthly installments.
JEA also will not apply late fees starting Nov. 6 until further notice.
JEA also offers payment solutions in partnership with nonprofit organizations agencies. To seek help, customers can apply through jea.com/assistance or call (904) 665-6000.
JEA says anyone who wants to help others pay their bills can either do so through the Neighbor to Neighbor Fund or make a direct payment for a particular customer with the utility’s Guest Pay program.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville forms Duval Care Coalition to help people losing SNAP benefits
Reporting by David Bauerlein, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
