MEDIA CONTACT:
Blake Case
blake@emccommunications.com
(601) 832-6079
SAN FRANCISCO, March 10, 2025 — Today, United Way Bay Area (UWBA) confirmed that $117M in federal funding awarded last April to help address hunger and homelessness in America — including $2.5 million intended for the Bay Area — is ‘paused indefinitely’ in Washington D.C. These funds — which were appropriated by Congress to support the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)’s Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) — provide emergency meals and shelter to thousands of Bay Area residents on any given night.
United Way Bay Area operates the Emergency Food and Shelter Program across Marin, Solano, San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, and San Mateo Counties to help struggling Bay Area residents access basic needs including food and shelter. Last year, UWBA directed over $2.7 million in federal EFSP funds to Bay Area social service agencies that served 1.13 million meals to hungry neighbors and provided shelter on 49,800 nights for neighbors experiencing or on the brink of homelessness.
“We were in the process of making grants to our Bay Area Emergency Food and Shelter Program partners for 2025 when we learned the funds were placed on an ‘indefinite pause,’” said Laura Escobar, Vice President of Safety Net Services at United Way Bay Area. “Millions of dollars should be out the door already. Our partners and neighbors are counting on this support to do incredibly important and time-sensitive work making sure that families can keep a roof over their heads and aren’t sending their children to bed hungry. This isn’t about politics. This is about keeping people fed and housed. We urge FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security to release these funds that have already been approved by Congress. Our most vulnerable neighbors are counting on it.”
UWBA has operated the EFSP in the region since its establishment in 1983. Leaders with United Way Bay Area will join other United Ways across the state in sending a letter to Congress asking that promised funds to provide emergency food and shelter assistance resume flowing immediately.
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To request an interview with Laura Escobar, VP of Safety Net Services at United Way Bay Area about the pause in critical federal funding for emergency assistance, contact Blake Case at blake@emccommunications.com or (601) 832-6079.
About United Way Bay Area
United Way Bay Area (UWBA) mobilizes the Bay Area to assist people living in poverty and to dismantle the root causes of poverty. One of the most respected and highly effective philanthropic organizations fighting poverty, UWBA supports workers and students seeking employment and better careers, helps families struggling to meet basic needs, supports our neighbors toward achieving their financial stability goals, and advocates for housing justice for all Bay Area residents. Learn more at uwba.org.
