2026-09-09 - City Commission Work Session

00:03[music]

00:05Good morning.

00:07>> So, we're uh happy to have uh a truly

00:11valued partner here this morning uh to

00:14provide an update on all of the great

00:17work that Mommy Valley Community Action

00:19Partnership is doing. And so I will uh

00:23turn it over to the president and CEO,

00:28Miss Aaron Jeff, to introduce her team

00:30and um lead us in the presentation.

00:34>> Tell her welcome back.

00:35>> Yes. Right. Thank you very much. It's an

00:38absolute pleasure to be here today.

00:39We're so excited to be able to share the

00:41work that Miami Valley Community Action

00:42Partnership is doing in the community

00:44and in partnership with the CBD. Um

00:46again, my name is Aaron Jeff. I'm

00:48pleased to serve the agency as the

00:50president and CEO and I'm joined here by

00:52two of my colleagues who I'll introduce

00:53in a moment. Um but we we are so excited

00:56to be here today. We reached out to the

00:58city commission office to ask if we

00:59might be able to come and give a brief

01:01presentation on our 2025 annual report

01:04and they did us one better and said why

01:06don't you come for a work session and

01:07talk to us about your programs and what

01:09you do in the community and how we can

01:10partner together. So we so appreciate

01:12this opportunity. We want you to see

01:14this presentation um as a relationship

01:17builder, not an ask for funding, but

01:18just an info share on the on the

01:20services that we provide in the

01:22community and how we might be able to

01:23partner um in the shared goals that we

01:25have for the city of Dayton.

01:29I'm joined here by two of my colleagues.

01:31Um first, I'll introduce Deb Donnelly.

01:34Um Deb has been with the agency for just

01:36over 10 years now. She is our vice

01:37president and chief financial officer

01:39and you may have seen her because she

01:40was recently

01:41>> [clears throat]

01:41>> um designated a 2026 CFO of the year by

01:44Dayton Business Journal. So we're so

01:45excited to have her on our team.

01:47>> Congratulations.

01:48>> Deb's going to talk to us later in our

01:50presentation about stewardship, funding,

01:52and organizational resilience. I'm also

01:54joined by my colleague Katie Otani Lee.

01:56Katie is our vice president and our

01:58chief operating officer. And Katie is

01:59going to share more about our programs,

02:01our resident experiences, and our

02:02partnerships.

02:07ABAP is a part of Dayton's community

02:09infrastructure. We have been here for 62

02:11years and we are part of a very vibrant

02:14day and we were pleased to serve in that

02:16role. Our headquarters is here in the

02:19city of Dayton and there's other ways

02:20that we are part of the community and

02:22investing besides just the presence. Um,

02:24for those of you who might not be

02:26familiar with community action,

02:28>> [clears throat]

02:28>> um, Mary Valley Community Action

02:30Partnership is the designated community

02:32action agency serving Montgomery, Dark,

02:34Green, and Prebble counties. This is a

02:36statewide designation. Each county in

02:38the state of Ohio does have a designated

02:40agency that serves that role. And that

02:42gives that community access to

02:43specialized funding um, that is catered

02:46specifically to the needs of the

02:47community. And there's lots of different

02:49ways that we make sure that um, our

02:50programs are meeting community needs. Um

02:53beyond that 4C county service area, we

02:55do provide some specialized services um

02:58specifically in weatherization and the

03:00electric partnership program um to help

03:02with energy efficiency. Um but I want to

03:05share with you that 98% of the counties

03:07um across the United States are served

03:09by the community action agency. So it's

03:11very important work. Um as I said, we

03:13are so pleased to have our headquarters

03:15here in Dayton. Um, in addition uh to

03:17our location at 719 South Main Street,

03:20our office location, we also have our

03:22Southwest Ohio Weatherization Training

03:24Center, which you'll hear more about

03:25later in our presentation. We are a

03:28regional agency. Um, but that regional

03:30scale is an asset to residents of the

03:32city of Dean. It allows our agency to

03:34bring infrastructure, specialized

03:36expertise, federal and state resources,

03:38and partnerships back to the city of De.

03:41If we look back at our statistics

03:42specifically during COVID, um many of

03:45the zip codes that were um served uh the

03:48most through our CO rental assistance

03:50program were in Dayton. Those zip codes

03:5245406, 07, 02, 03, and 17. This is

03:57evidence that when Dayton faced an

03:59extraordinary crisis,

04:01already had the infrastructure and the

04:02relationships needed to respond. So that

04:05ability to respond did not happen

04:06overnight. It reflects decades of

04:09investment in the local infrastructure.

04:14Our presence in Dayton creates local

04:16economic value for the city of Dayton

04:18and for the region. Um in 2025 we

04:21employed 45 employees uh who worked in

04:24Dayton. And that combined payroll was

04:26about $2.13 million which led to um

04:30about $53,000 in Dayton work tax. Um,

04:34additionally, MVCAP contributes to

04:36Dayton economically, not only as an

04:37employer, but also as a purchaser, as a

04:40trainer through that workforce

04:41development site, the weatherization

04:42training center, um, and a source of

04:44outside investment. Our presence in

04:46Dayton creates value beyond the services

04:48we provide. It helps to support uh, the

04:51employment, develop skills, and bring

04:53resources back into our local economy.

04:57We want to share that the work that

04:58MVCAT does naturally align with the

05:01mayor's flight plan. Um much of the work

05:03identified in the flight flight plan is

05:05work that MVCAP is already doing

05:07alongside our Dayton residents. So for

05:09the first runway uh people centered

05:11governance we have programs that address

05:13housing stability and housing

05:14preservation. Um something that's really

05:17important to know about our programming

05:19is through our weatherization program we

05:20are able to improve tenant occupied

05:23structures. Uh you'll know that federal

05:24funding there's not a lot of federal

05:26funding around that can help um rental

05:28occupied structures. So, a being able to

05:31provide energy efficiency improvements

05:32there helps to preserve the housing

05:34stock for the next generation. We also

05:36offer home repair and we we uh do lead

05:39safe work and lead remediation through

05:41some local partners. Uh some of our

05:43programs center on utility

05:44affordability. We offer financial

05:46counseling and home ownership and we

05:48help residents navigate complex public

05:50systems.

05:52We're grade two for prevention and

05:53public safety. Um, we see the work that

05:56we do with housing stability and utility

05:58stability as upstream interventions. And

06:01what I mean by that is that anytime that

06:03our programs can help prevent a shut off

06:04or prevent an eviction um that keeps a

06:07household crisis from escalating and

06:09that uh thereby helps to improve public

06:12safety. We also work to connect

06:14residents to a lot of our different

06:15partners who offer resources like mental

06:17health, employment, housing, um legal

06:20help and and many other resources. So we

06:22see our role as complementing uh the

06:25city public safety functions rather than

06:26trying to duplicate them. For the third

06:28runway, business and economic

06:30development, uh we offer programs uh

06:32that help increase a household's

06:34financial capability and helps to put um

06:36home owners home ownership within reach.

06:38Um our weatherization and home repair

06:40help to preserve D's housing stock. Uh

06:43weatherization also supports skilled

06:45trades careers uh through our

06:46weatherization training program, but

06:48also through the on the drop training

06:49that we provide. Um when folks join our

06:51weatherization team um stable housing

06:55and utilities are workforce issues

06:57because people cannot maintain

06:58employment when basic household systems

07:00are failing. So all of the all of the

07:02programs that we survive provide um help

07:04to support um strong households. Uh at

07:07this time I'm going to hand things over

07:08to my colleague Katie who's going to

07:10show us what this work looks like in

07:12measurable results and an experience to

07:13an individual household.

07:23Thank you. And

07:26thank you. Good morning. I'm delighted

07:28to be here. Um I'm going to speak a

07:31little bit about um some of the tangible

07:34ways that our our programs are are

07:36helping the community. Um you'll see

07:42you'll see some selected indicators.

07:44Now, my intention here is not to take

07:46you through our annual report. You all

07:48can have a copy of that. Um, but I do

07:50want to give you a sense of our scale.

07:52Um, Miami Valley Cap managed about 18.5

07:57million in in revenue. Um, um, and in

08:02addition to that, 87%

08:05of the expenses supported our program

08:08services across our service area. Nearly

08:11$7 million we provided in direct

08:14assistance to individuals and families

08:16that we serve. And right here in Dayton,

08:20um our weatherization training center

08:22that Aaron mentioned trained uh more

08:26than 200 workers. Uh so those we we we

08:31have workforce development. We offer a

08:34southwest hub for our uh folks in our

08:38weatherization. people come from across

08:40the street across the state rather um to

08:44utilize that. Um so it's it's extremely

08:47impactful. These numbers that you see

08:50before you uh are not just resources

08:53that we have to share. They are really

08:56tangible uh ways that we provide

09:00household stability that we provide

09:02safer homes through our weatherization

09:05uh program. for example, our workforce

09:08development through our weatherization

09:10program and we provide economic uh

09:12activity [clears throat] within the uh

09:14greater Dayton area.

09:17Miami Valley Cap, I think, is uniquely

09:19positioned

09:21in that uh we we have the scale and the

09:24infrastructure to bring significant

09:27resources into the community.

09:32a couple of our key programs. Uh we have

09:35a a tremendous scope and breath of

09:38programs and we won't review them all

09:40today, but two of the most impactful and

09:43quite frankly the ones that uh folks

09:46uh think of when they associate them

09:49with uh the Miami Valley Cap is our

09:52utility assistance program. So if we

09:54were to look at just this year's uh

09:57service, we have helped more than 6,400

10:02individuals with uh home energy

10:05assistance.

10:06That translates to over a million

10:09dollars in reported uh HEAP and crisis

10:13program. So we have a summer crisis

10:15program and a winter crisis crisis

10:19program. Uh, in addition, our

10:22weatherization program

10:24has helped 37 households specifically in

10:28Dayton focused assistance like the

10:30Dayton Home Repair Network, for example.

10:33That translates to about a million and a

10:35half in resources that we've invested in

10:38the community and approximately 85%

10:41of the households served through that

10:43funding were located right here in

10:45Dayton. Our weatherization program isn't

10:49simply about lowering energy bills. It

10:53can [clears throat] be used to help

10:55address health and safety issues, red

10:58reduce the cost of remaining in one's

11:01home, and help preserve Dayton's

11:03existing housing stock as well as

11:05improve long-term stability.

11:08The work also supports local

11:10contractors. We can't do all of the work

11:12ourselves. vendors and other skilled

11:14trade employment in the area.

11:18I suppose what's key to consider about

11:22this is that these resources that uh we

11:26steward don't remain at the federal and

11:29state level. MVCAP is just a mechanism

11:33through which the federal and state

11:35resources actually reach Dayton

11:38residents by converting them into

11:40tangible improvements for households and

11:43homes. Um,

11:46I think of Envy not just as another

11:50service provider, another nonprofit

11:52providing services in the area. We're

11:54actually part of the city's delivery

11:57infrastructure.

12:02in partnership with Montgomery County

12:05Job and Family Services, Miami Valley uh

12:09CAP was asked to step up and partner

12:12with them to administer the prevention

12:15uh retention and contingency program.

12:18This has been um hugely impactful for

12:22our community. I think the volume of

12:25increase um speaks to that. We took over

12:29the administration of this program in

12:312024

12:33and 2025.

12:35Uh although it does serve Montgomery

12:38County as a whole, for the past two

12:40years, nor nearly 3/4 of the households

12:45that we serve reside right here in

12:47Dayton, Ohio. Uh you can see that our

12:51numbers have jumped dramatically. So

12:53there's a lot of numbers on this screen.

12:55The one that I would um call your

12:58attention to and uh I suppose the one to

13:01walk away with is just in the last eight

13:05months alone

13:07we have

13:09uh nearly served 94%

13:13of the same clients the same amount of

13:16climate clients in this year just the

13:19first eight months than we did all of

13:222025.

13:24Um that speaks volumes and we understand

13:27there's lots of reasons behind that. Um

13:30folks are experiencing reduced

13:32employment if not loss of employment

13:35sometimes then lost benefits that go

13:37along with that rising costs of most

13:42everything. Um health crisises and even

13:45domestic violence. So, um, we are proud

13:49to partner with, uh, Montgomery County

13:52JFS.

13:53I think they recognized that NVCAP

13:58provides not just that immediate

14:00assistance and we can do that quite

14:02well, um, but we're also the doorway to

14:05other NVCAP services.

14:13For example, um we recently received um

14:17a a very nice letter from someone that

14:19we had um assisted. Um

14:23he was a he was a father with several

14:26children in the home. He came to MVCAP

14:29with one request. He needed some

14:31assistance meeting his water bill

14:34expense.

14:35um through our PRC program, we were able

14:39to provide him that. But what I think

14:42was most valuable is we were the

14:44connector to other resources that he

14:47needed to help stabilize um his

14:50household. So through our intake process

14:53and the time that we spend with our

14:55clients, um we were able to identify

14:58that um he actually was um experiencing

15:03uh not crisis, but he needed some

15:05assistance meeting his utility bills. He

15:08needed some education and guidance uh to

15:11provide financial stability. Um he also

15:16needed some help to stabilize his

15:18monthly bill. So, we were able to do

15:20that with a number of our programs. We

15:22provided weatherization

15:24um to contain his uh utility costs on

15:28the long term to make his home safe uh

15:31to stay in for him and his children. And

15:33like I said, through financial uh

15:35counseling, we were able to help him

15:38develop uh a strategic plan for his

15:43finances in the short term and managing

15:45his household expenses in the long term.

15:48So this is actually not unusual. We just

15:52happened to get a really nice long

15:54letter from this gentleman explaining

15:56how we how we helped them through that

15:58process. And I think this is this is uh

16:02the real value that Miami Valley Cap and

16:07our agency capacity allows us to help.

16:10So he didn't just have a problem meeting

16:13his water bill or his utility bill. he

16:17had a household stability problem and we

16:19were able to address that um piece by

16:22piece. Our goal at MVCAP is not simply

16:26to close an application within the

16:29required time frame. It's to help

16:31resolve the immediate crisis and then

16:34also leave that household more stable

16:37than when they came to us.

16:43But we recognize that we don't do this

16:45alone.

16:47The name of our agency,

16:49community

16:51action and partnership

16:55uh

16:57intimate that there are um there is work

17:00to be done in a collaborative effort for

17:03commute for collective impact. We

17:06obviously can't do this work alone. So

17:08we have strategic partnerships and we

17:10thank the city of Dayton for being one

17:12of them. Um, we partner with them for

17:15the Dayton Home Repair Network, Ohio

17:18Healthy Homes Network, keeping folks

17:21safe and stable in their home. We also

17:24have several initiatives to support

17:27older adults and veterans um through the

17:30Area Agency on Aging, um, the Montgomery

17:34County Veterans Affairs Services

17:36Commission. We go out to the Dayton VA

17:38once a month uh to help residents there

17:41who might need utility assistance or

17:43might need to stabilize um uh their

17:47ongoing uh utility bills.

17:51We also provide household and economic

17:53stability through the help of partners

17:56like the United Way of Greater Dayton.

17:58Um the Dayton Volunteers Lawyer Project.

18:01They uh partner with us on a regular

18:04basis to do clinics since we do

18:07financial counseling. They will also uh

18:10meet with us on a regular basis. We help

18:13stand up gen city market uh which is a

18:17tremendous resource in our community. We

18:20provide the building in which they

18:21operate. We have partners uh to help us

18:25build a pipeline in the workforce

18:28specifically in our weatherization

18:30through Liberty uh high school and we

18:33also have a meaningful partner with

18:36county court. MVCAP connects systems

18:40that would other otherwise operate

18:42separately either by the examples that

18:44I've given you food banks that we work

18:47with um we are able to um bring those

18:51together under a single system

18:54trying to eliminate the silos that

18:57sometimes exist in communities.

19:00partners depend on trust and trust also

19:05depends of course on responsible

19:07stewardship of the public and the

19:09private resources that are entrusted to

19:11us. So to speak more about that, I'm

19:14going to turn things over to Doug

19:15Donnelly, our CFO.

19:27Um currently a lot of scrutiny over the

19:31um federal programs and organizations

19:34that administer public funds. there's um

19:37a uh a focus on fraud, waste and abuse

19:41which we are are well aware of and um

19:45and that that accountability is

19:47something that is built into MVCAPS

19:50infrastructure. We have significant

19:52federal and state funds and we take that

19:55um that oversight and um fiduciary

20:00responsibility extremely extremely

20:02seriously. Um and as as such it is built

20:06into what we do not just when the

20:09auditors come around to look at it but

20:11also every day. Um that is that is

20:13something that we are our physical team

20:16especially is very focused on our

20:18leadership team and our program

20:19leadership staff.

20:22We have an active board of trustees

20:25um and they um oversee the financial um

20:29aspects and the compliance aspects of

20:31all of our funding um resources. We have

20:34independent annual audits

20:37um and we're because we receive so much

20:39in federal funding those are single

20:41audits. So those are compliance as well

20:43as as financial audits. Um we have

20:46required monitoring by federal, state

20:48and local funders. It feels like from a

20:51fiscal department's perspective, we're

20:53always being audited by somebody. Um

20:55everything runs on a different fiscal um

20:58year end and so there's always an audit

21:00going on. So we're always prepared and

21:03ready for that.

21:05We built in internal control internal

21:08fiscal controls and procurement

21:10safeguards um that govern what we do on

21:13a daily basis. Um we have monitors

21:16covering program specific compliance

21:19issues. They look at um the eligibility

21:22requirements, how the funding is being

21:24used. Um and of course we have

21:27continuous changes and changes and

21:29improvements on those processes as

21:32things change um both um from the

21:35funders perspective and internally.

21:39Um

21:44our we're we're we're currently

21:46undergoing a Department of Development

21:49audit. Um they audit us every two years.

21:54Um our last audit was an audit of 38

21:58federal and state programs

22:00um amounting to about $103 million.

22:05Um what they look for are compliance

22:08issues, legal and

22:11and funding resource compliance. They

22:13look at um accuracy and um all the

22:17details

22:19and we had no findings in our last um

22:22development. So we we're hoping to

22:25continue that trend. We we anticipate we

22:27will continue that trend going forward.

22:33Um the the numbers that are on the

22:35screen there are um last 2025

22:39numbers. uh revenues below over 18

22:42million and expenses are similar. That

22:45results at 38,000 in the positive

22:50compared to 2024 where we had 20 million

22:52in revenues, 21,000 in expenses for a

22:56bit of a def deficit, but that and um

22:59that points out our our continued um

23:03efforts towards stability.

23:07Um,

23:12[laughter]

23:15as you know, fiscal people can sometimes

23:16get into the weeds, so I won't do that.

23:19[laughter]

23:20Um, federal resources are foundational

23:23to our local impact. Um, 77% of our

23:27revenue came from federal grants. um 14

23:31million um was brought into the

23:34community through federal programs.

23:36Resources are supporting those utility

23:38and housing stability um efforts, safer,

23:42more efficient, energy efficient homes.

23:45Um local employment and workforce

23:47development, contractor and vendor

23:49activity, and stronger neighborhoods.

23:53Protecting these resources is important,

23:56but we don't want to put all of our eggs

23:58in one basket either. So, we've been

24:00working on efforts to diversify those

24:03funding resources.

24:06Um,

24:08we're not moving away from those public

24:11programs. We're just adding additional

24:13resources to help support those

24:14programs.

24:22The environment is changing, but

24:25residents will still need continuity.

24:27and um note that we they can rely on us

24:29to continue to be there for them. Um

24:32several of our major programs

24:35transitioned in this year in 26 from the

24:38Ohio Department of Development to the

24:40Ohio Department of Job and Family

24:42Services. Um many aspects of this

24:45transition have been positive. It in a

24:48lot of ways is a better fit for our

24:50agency. Um but there have been some

24:53frontline

24:55um operational

24:57logistical issues going on. Um changes

25:00in systems, changes in permissions. Um

25:05just a lot of processes, workflows,

25:08things that have been changing as a

25:09result of that transition.

25:13It's getting better every day um as we

25:15transition through that process.

25:19um

25:21long-term funding, long-term federal

25:23funding is um uncertain

25:27and changes at the state and federal

25:30level and affect how services are funded

25:32and delivered.

25:34Um but households still need us to be

25:39there for them. their cost their um

25:44needs remain significant and very

25:46complex

25:48and handicap continues to serve as the

25:50bridge between changing public systems

25:53and the residents who need our help.

25:56The the key u message here I think is in

26:01this changing environment a strong local

26:04infrastructure matters

26:06and so do strong partnerships.

26:09Our

26:16priority is to diversify our funding

26:19without moving away from our mission.

26:24We need to protect the programs and

26:25expertise that our residents rely on. We

26:29but we also need to increase private and

26:31philanthropic investments

26:35um and and deepen those local and

26:37regional programs.

26:40We're pursuing contracts where MVCAP's

26:42infrastructure and expertise can provide

26:45value. We're breeding funding across

26:48multiple sources rather than relying on

26:50one source.

26:53We continue to examine how community

26:55action infrastructure can support

26:56emerging community needs.

27:00Part of this MDCAP wants to understand

27:02the city's emergency priorities early so

27:06that we can react to those and support

27:08those.

27:10So the city we want the city to know

27:12what capabilities MBAP has, what we can

27:15bring to housing, utilities, workforce

27:17development, financial stability,

27:19neighborhood conditions and services for

27:22vulnerable residents.

27:26Now Aaron is going to close by

27:28describing let me feel this relationship

27:30come up

27:41and we're just so thankful to be able to

27:43present to you today um and to hopefully

27:45have a really great conversation with

27:46you about what could come next. It is

27:49important to repeat that um that we the

27:52the city commission sees us as a trusted

27:54partner for what comes next uh for our

27:56community for the city of D. Um we'd

27:59like to respectfully ask if there's a

28:01way for us to be included early on when

28:03you are identifying emerging needs that

28:05the residents have that can help us to

28:06customize and structure our programs in

28:09a way that can be more responsive um to

28:11what you're hearing from your

28:12constituents. Um we very much appreciate

28:15that we've already been invited to

28:16participate um on the housing policy

28:18steering committee. Um but we'd love to

28:20be a part of any conversations that have

28:22to do with housing and neighborhood

28:24strategies um so that we can help inform

28:26the work that you're doing and be able

28:27to share statistics and some of the

28:29anecdotal evidence that we're seeing

28:30when we go into clients homes and speak

28:32with them. um [clears throat] when you

28:34are thinking about utility affordability

28:36and household stability, we'd love to be

28:38part of those conversations and we are

28:40meeting with representatives from the

28:41Department of Water next week um on an

28:44exciting new initiative. So, we

28:45appreciate that outreach. We also can be

28:48of help um in designing services for

28:50vulnerable residents um and connecting

28:52residents to economic opportunity. Um,

28:55so we want to continue um the

28:57partnership that we already have, but we

28:59would love to work to be able to

29:00strengthen the referral pathways um that

29:03we have um with the city so that we're

29:05supporting city initiatives um and

29:07aligning those uh aligning our services

29:09um to match that. Um many members of the

29:13commission are frequently referring uh

29:14clients to our services. So we very much

29:16appreciate that and you're advocating

29:17for us and helping the community to

29:19understand our capacity as well. Um, we

29:22would like you to be able to trust us as

29:24a resource um, when they hear when you

29:26hear recurring concerns from residents

29:29and we want you to remember that we

29:30bring a lot of different things to the

29:32table. We bring resources that are

29:34shared from state and federal sources

29:36uh, back into the community. We have

29:38implementation capacity. Um, we're able

29:40to to navigate when there's a need

29:43identified. Um, and we have a framework

29:45in place to be able to uh to be

29:47responsive to that. We can also provide

29:50data, specialized expertise, and

29:52resident level understanding. India is

29:55so proud to have been part of the city

29:57of Dayton uh for 62 years, and we've

29:59helped Dayton residents through economic

30:01changes, neighborhood changes,

30:02recessions, tornadoes, the pandemic, and

30:05changes in government, and we intend to

30:07bring it here for for at least another

30:0962 years. We want the city to see MCAP

30:12not only as an organization that

30:13delivers critical services within the

30:15community, but also as a thought partner

30:16in identifying challenges, shaping

30:18solutions, and strengthening dates

30:20communities.

30:22So, um I know that the the commissioners

30:25are very tight on time. Uh we're so

30:27grateful to be here, but um we would

30:29love to keep the conversation going,

30:31whether that's uh today or or just

30:33informally as we move forward. We're

30:35specifically interested in knowing what

30:37are you hearing from residents uh that

30:39you think we should know uh perhaps

30:41about emerging needs, perhaps it's about

30:43service delivery. Um what do you see as

30:47some of the greatest opportunities for

30:48stronger coordination between our agency

30:51and the city of Dayton? And where can

30:53our expertise, data, and community

30:55perspective be useful?

30:59>> Thank you very much. We really

31:01appreciate the update. I'll turn it over

31:03to my colleagues for their questions and

31:05comments. Commissioner Becko.

31:09>> Thank you, Mayor. Um, first of all,

31:12thank you all for being here. I would

31:14certainly admire

31:16the fact that you were proactive in

31:18reaching out and actually uh coming to

31:20us and certainly appreciate that and

31:22happy um to to keep building this

31:25relationship. Um Aaron, thank you for

31:29your leadership. It's not long ago that

31:32I think our journey's cost this

31:34organization. So, it's great to see you

31:37and uh thank you for

31:41what you're doing. Um couple things also

31:44I just want to really

31:48DJ work.

31:50Um first question and I don't have many.

31:53Um I think some of my last engagements

31:57with you all were years ago uh when I

32:01was uh working under mayor men at the

32:04time postco I do recall uh receiving a

32:08lot of um

32:11um you know just emails from residents

32:15who needed your your your services. uh

32:19but postcoid we're trying to figure out

32:22uh how to best go about that. So

32:25initially I just wanted to ask uh if you

32:28all are back at a new physical location

32:31on the main street.

32:32>> Yes. Yes. And we have been for a number

32:34of years now and I appreciate you

32:36bringing that up because that's a common

32:37misconception in the community. Um

32:39during the height of the pandemic, uh we

32:41did move completely to remote services

32:44in order to keep our staff in the

32:45community safe, but we are back in

32:47business and we welcome people through

32:49our front doors uh if that's convenient

32:51for them. Otherwise, we have application

32:53methods online for our team. Wonderful.

32:56>> Certainly glad to hear that and I

32:58appreciate the restrict back in the

33:01office and have been for a long time. So

33:03glad to hear that. Uh the only other

33:05question I have is um as it relates to

33:08the both the weatherization program and

33:12um believe the PRC uh service that you

33:15all provide the number specifically

33:18under the PRC program uh January through

33:21August 2026. It seems on track to

33:25potentially pass where you all ended in

33:27in 2025. And I'm just curious both as it

33:31relates to weatherization and PRC

33:33services um are you all finding um

33:37previous to 2024 are these numbers

33:40increase? Are you guys seeing a greater

33:42need um just more capacity um as it

33:46relates to residents needing help?

33:50>> We are seeing an increased need and the

33:52trend is that the need continues to

33:54increase in the community and and we

33:56think there's a lot of reasons behind

33:57that. Um if you look at the grant

33:59resources that we have available, um the

34:02purchasing power of those grants, the

34:04the amount of staff that we can hire

34:07with those grants, uh the assistance

34:09that provided in the community, even

34:11though those numbers have been fairly

34:12level, we all know that inflation is

34:14hitting our community really hard. Um

34:17and so what we see is that our um our

34:20residents are having to make really

34:21tough decisions between uh am I going to

34:24go to the grocery store and get what my

34:26kid needs for breakfast? Am I gonna

34:28think about my prescription? Um am I

34:30going to get my car fixed so I can get

34:32to work? But not enough money to do all

34:34those things. So our services are

34:36becoming um increasingly more important

34:38in this environment. Um I do expect that

34:41um the demand will increase um and

34:44that's the reason why we're really

34:46looking to diversify our funding and

34:48find some other fun industries that can

34:50help us with that human capacity. Um to

34:54say it very frankly, um the need that we

34:56have in our service area outpaces the

34:58staff capacity that we're able to hire

35:00with the funds that we have. So we're

35:01very grateful for our funding sources

35:03and we're always looking for ways that

35:04we can be um more efficient and more

35:07effective with the resources that we

35:08currently have. Uh but we do anticipate

35:11that the need will continue to rise. Um

35:14in the postcoid years what we have seen

35:16is that even if we as we have returned

35:18to pre-COVID funding levels um we have

35:20not seen any drop off number of people

35:24who are coming to us u for various types

35:26of assistance that has not stabilized

35:28since co

35:30>> I appreciate uh that clarity and again I

35:32just want to thank you and your team for

35:35all the information coming appreciate.

35:37>> Thank you very much commissioner love to

35:39be here. Thank you, Commissioner Fairch.

35:43Commissioner Fairchild

35:44>> comments to my colleague. Welcome back

35:46and thank you for the presentation

35:50though

35:52presentation

35:56increased demand as needing

35:59behind that statement are families who

36:02are living in very vulnerable

36:04situations. Um I was curious on the

36:07other side I didn't note the

36:08reconciliate we know that the

36:10reconciliation bill is going to impact

36:13families because of reduction in SNAP

36:15and Medicaid u which will increase you

36:18know exasperates the dynamic you were

36:21just explaining

36:23um have are

36:26um do we have the same were there um and

36:31I saw that 77% of your funding comes

36:34from federal government. So, I didn't

36:36know if there was anything in the

36:37reconciliation bill that impacts you

36:41currently or whether I I saw that

36:44there's an uncertainty. I suspect

36:46there's always a question around federal

36:48funding.

36:51>> Um, that's a great question. Um,

36:53absolutely. We we've experienced a lot

36:55of uncertainty with the new federal

36:57administration. Their priorities have

36:59shifted and there's not game plan out

37:01there that we can follow. there's

37:03there's uh a lot of twists and turns

37:05that makes it difficult to be able to

37:06plan ahead for an agency like ours. So,

37:08in terms of the federal funding, um

37:11given that the House has now uh pass the

37:14Senate's uh continuing resolution, we

37:17are uh safe until until December. Our

37:21programming will continue as is until

37:23December. and and then what the federal

37:25government does uh because what happens

37:28uh with the fiscal year 2027 budget

37:31bills will affect all of our programs.

37:33Uh the reconciliation bill, there's not

37:35a lot of language in there that directly

37:37impacts the grants, but you hit the nail

37:39on the head. Um the cuts that are in

37:41other programs that are social safety

37:43nets for the clients and the communities

37:44that we serve will thereby increase the

37:47need. um any of our services at that

37:49point are becoming more valuable um to

37:52that household, to that client because

37:53it helps to free up budget in other

37:55areas. So what we consistently see is

37:58that people who have never come to us

38:00for services before um they hear about

38:02us and they are um applying for those

38:04services. Um a lot of people um they

38:08don't want to have to take uh what they

38:10would call a handout. We don't see our

38:11programs as handouts. we see them as

38:13necessary and critical aid um to address

38:16uh stability issues within our

38:18community, but u the demand is is only

38:21going to increase. Um even some of the

38:24proposed cuts to Head Start, reducing

38:26the school day, um the hours at school,

38:29those kinds of changes that will make it

38:31difficult for single parents to maintain

38:33their employment. Um so we are we are

38:37foreshadowing um we're expecting a lot

38:40of additional demand um as these

38:42changes.

38:44>> Thank you. Um [clears throat] regarding

38:46one of the questions around what we do

38:47around coordination I don't know how

38:50much public policy advocacy you do or

38:54can do. Um but we passed a resolution

38:59recently um you know calling out the

39:02reduction to this social safety net. But

39:06we know that that resolution is not

39:07nearly enough. We really need to be

39:11finding ways or coalition of people to

39:13really strongly advocate to state

39:17federal legislators to address the the

39:20social safety. So, I didn't know if

39:22there's something anything you're

39:23currently working on that we can

39:25coordinate with you, collaborate with

39:27you on.

39:28>> Yes. Yes, we are we are part of

39:30statewide and national networks that do

39:32advocacy um and some lobbying. Of

39:34course, we're not charging any bonding

39:36to our federal funds. Um but um through

39:39two of our federal partners uh the

39:41National Community Action Foundation and

39:43the National Utility and Energy

39:46Affordability Coalition um we are

39:48participating in in multiple um advocacy

39:53uh events and uh initiatives throughout

39:55the year. So that might be as simple as

39:57providing an education to uh members of

39:59Congress who might be on the fence about

40:01a bill because they don't quite

40:02understand how the services impact a

40:04community. we've been uh part of those

40:06types of calls for education um to to

40:09fly to Washington uh to be part of some

40:11really impactful conversations. What I

40:13specifically appreciate about the

40:15National Energy and Utility

40:18Affordability Coalition is that we're

40:20joined there by utilities um and utility

40:23companies are able to open doors um in

40:26Washington. they can get us a lot of

40:28meetings and help advocate for the

40:30critical um services to low and moderate

40:33income constituents. So, we appreciate

40:35that partnership very much. We would be

40:37open to participating in any coalitions

40:39or initiatives um hosted by the city of

40:41Deon and we'd all happy to leverage any

40:43of the existing partnerships that we

40:45have federally.

40:47>> Thank you.

40:47>> Thank you.

40:49>> Thank you, Commissioner. Commissioner

40:50Joseph.

40:52>> Thank you, Mayor. Uh just two comments.

40:54first is every time I refer somebody to

40:56you all, no matter how difficult the

40:57case, you you've been so I really

40:59appreciate that because it's always

41:01somebody having a really tough time, you

41:03know, it's the worst day and worst week

41:04or the worst month of their lives. So,

41:06thank you for or you're always

41:08thoughtful with them and always hear

41:09back. So, so I really do appreciate it.

41:12Um, and second, I I feel like I should

41:14mention uh you mentioned you're you're

41:17seeing more clients at work. And

41:21one of the major causes of that is uh a

41:24federal government that refuses to pay

41:25people up their work pay a living wage

41:29for a for a day's work. Um, and then

41:32cuts funding for programs like yours,

41:35uh, ignoring the fact that need is going

41:36up because they want to fund their

41:38priorities, whether that's ballrooms or

41:39whatever it is.

41:41uh advocating for change at all levels

41:43is wonderful and I really appreciate

41:45your willingness to join us on those

41:46things and we stand behind you too and

41:48support your coalition. So thank you

41:49very much for being here.

41:54>> Just very briefly I wanted to I would

41:56like brother to echo my colleagues

41:58comments. Thank you for your leadership,

42:00your entire leadership uh

42:01[clears throat] team and all the work

42:02that you do and your commitment. And I

42:04will again second that. Um anytime that

42:07I refer any of the the residents,

42:09constituents, whatever have you over to

42:11your organization, you all have been

42:13more than willing to step up and to

42:14provide that level of support and

42:16assistance. And so again, I just wanted

42:18to thank you and and commend you for

42:20your your hard work and your leadership.

42:21You know that we're here to support. So

42:24thank you all for being here. And thank

42:25you, Miss Jackson. Thank you for the

42:26leadership team, the city manager's

42:28office.

42:31>> Yes, please.

42:31>> I would like to publicly thank you for

42:34participating in the Ohio Association of

42:36Community Action Agency summer

42:37conference that was hosted today. Um you

42:41your speech was perfect and we've gotten

42:43a lot of really positive feedback about

42:45how impactful what you shared was to our

42:47network. So, thank you so much for

42:48making time for that. It means a lot to

42:49us.

42:50>> Totally. Likewise. Appreciate the

42:52opportunity. Thank you, Mr. Davis. and

42:54staff for your support on that. Thank

42:57you.

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