St. Tammany Parish Government has awarded nearly $5 million in federal funding to local non-profits to continue critical services, President Mike Cooper announced.
The initiative is part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Public Health – Non-Profit Program, which provides for local organizations negatively impacted by COVID-19.
The following non-profits applied for and were awarded funding: Action Youth and Community Resources, Boys and Girls Club of Metro Louisiana, Bush Food Pantry, Inc., Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans, Children’s Museum of St. Tammany, East St. Tammany Habitat for Humanity, Habitat for Humanity St. Tammany West, National Alliance on Mental Illness Saint Tammany, Northlake Homeless Coalition, Northshore Food Bank, Southeast Louisiana Legal Services, The Samaritan Center, Safe Haven, Youth Service Bureau of St. Tammany, Community Christian Concern, and United Way of Southeast Louisiana.
In 2021, federal legislation provided relief for state and local governments, negatively impacted by the pandemic, through ARPA. In total, St. Tammany Parish Government received $50.5 million to be used for non-profits, infrastructure improvements, broadband access and recovery from negative economic impacts.
In the summer of 2021, the St. Tammany Corporation facilitated four in-person stakeholder focus group sessions, convened the Parish Government working group and administered an online community survey, which produced more than 700 responses to determine the framework of how the ARPA funds would be efficiently and appropriately utilized. As a result, $5 million was allocated to public health response focusing on community resilience, including housing, emergency assistance, transportation and behavioral health services.
