2022

The Franklin County commissioners this morning voted to accept a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to operate a three-year program to address economic mobility and responsible parenting with teens and young adults.  The county’s Child Support Enforcement Agency (CSEA) will administer the grant and provide instruction using the No Kidding Ohio curriculum to promote economic mobility, build parenting and healthy relationship skills, reduce unplanned pregnancies, and prevent relationship violence.
 

The Franklin County Commissioners this morning joined Congresswoman Joyce Beatty and representatives from IMPACT Community Action to formally open the Otto Beatty Jr. Men’s Shop at IMPACT’s facility on the near-south side of Columbus.  The shop will make professional attire available to men who are working to recover in the pandemic economy as well as providing wraparound supportive services, and is named after the congresswoman’s late husband, Otto Beatty Jr.
 

This morning, the Franklin County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved Community Partnership grants to six local community health agencies totaling $1,397,989.  The grants are to be administered by the commissioners’ Community Partnership program, which oversees grants to local agencies that seek to create good-paying jobs for residents and economic development opportunities for businesses, protect the environment, stabilize families and children, and further the community’s access to affordable healthcare.  Specifically, this set of grants supports the commissioner’s equity initiatives by funding agencies that will provide more equitable access to healthcare or positive health outcomes for residents.
 

The Franklin County Commissioners this morning released their annual State of the County Report, detailing the ways their office works to support Franklin County residents every day and throughout the year.  It’s available online at Report.FranklinCountyOhio.gov.  This year, there is particular focus on supports for families and businesses still struggling to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.  Among other supports, the commissioners’ team made almost $5 million in grants and loans to struggling small businesses last year, provided more than $6 million in rental and mortgage assistance for families, facilitated the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine, and distributed more than 8.5 million items of personal protective equipment to local hospitals and other partners.
 

The Franklin County Commissioners announced this morning that Laura Repasky would be starting April 18^th as Human Resources Director for the board.  Though new to the position, Repasky is not new to the commissioners’ office, having worked there for 11 years and serving since 2018 as the Chief Operating Officer of the commissioners’ largest agency, Job and Family Services.  In the new role, Repasky will be taking over responsibility for employment services, training, and comprehensive human resources for the board’s 14 county agencies and more than 1,400 employees. 
 

Each April, counties all over the nation celebrate National County Government Month with information and activities designed to highlight all the ways that county governments are relevant to their residents and positively impact their lives throughout the year.  This year, the national theme is Counties Thrive, and the Franklin County Commissioners will be noting the many ways that they work to serve every Franklin County resident every day, and to help them thrive as we all continue to recover from the pandemic.
 

The Franklin County commissioners this morning announced a historic new investment in families and local child care providers called Franklin County RISE.  The partnership with Action For Children will invest nearly $23 million over two years to support Franklin County families who are struggling to pay for child care as well as child care providers and staff.  This is the most significant investment ever in the local early childhood learning system, and builds on earlier funding from the City of Columbus.  The funding comes from the American Rescue Plan and is intended to help families who are facing the “benefits cliff” in which they make too much to qualify for Publicly Funded Child Care (PFCC) but too little to actually afford child care, as well as the early learning centers and teachers on which they rely.
 

On Tuesday, the Franklin County Board of Commissioners committed to developing the county workforce to meet a growing demand for technology jobs, while placing equity at the forefront of their approach. This innovative partnership between the Franklin County Department of Job and Family Services and the nationally recognized tech training nonprofit Per Scholas will help train and place 200 low-income women of color on the path to self-sufficiency through good paying jobs.

 

An additional $8 million is now available through the Columbus-Franklin County Small Business Recovery Fund to help central Ohio small businesses continue to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. Grant funding will be prioritized for businesses that are located in underserved communities and are minority-, woman- or veteran-owned. Federal funding and support from local resources are meant to protect the small business economy and help entrepreneurship flourish in the region.

This morning, the Franklin County Commissioners have announced $2.7 million in grants to 88 local nonprofit agencies that serve low-income Franklin County residents. Many nonprofits have struggled mightily during the pandemic, during which they saw a greatly increased demand for services and greatly decreased donations.