Director of Finance Leticia Shelton presented an overview of the city’s tax relief and GAP grant programs, including administration, eligibility and processing status for the one‑time GRAMA (GAP) income-based housing grant.

Shelton said the GAP program provides a one-time $1,200 income-based grant to qualifying applicants, the FY25 budget for the program is $3.9 million, and applications are being accepted through Dec. 31, 2025. The city opened applications on Jan. 13, 2025; the real estate division (budgeted for 10 positions but with four vacancies) oversees the program and had only one staff member dedicated to processing, which created a backlog.

As of the committee meeting, staff reported 2,337 total applications received, 975 applications unprocessed, and about 1,100 closed tickets (incomplete applications or applicants who did not reside in Richmond). The department said it had hired three temporary staff to work through the backlog and would continue processing applications until the funding is exhausted. Committee members warned staff that a social-media promotion of the program that day was likely to drive a surge of additional applications and asked staff to improve communication to applicants. Council members asked for a breakdown distinguishing incomplete applications from applications deemed ineligible, and for clearer outreach tactics (for example, caller ID and mailed notices) to reach older residents.

Shelton also summarized the older-adult and disability tax-freeze and exemption programs, the state personal-property tax relief program, and noted that the state tax-amnesty program has not been administered since 2018.

Ending: Staff said the temporary hires are trained and are processing applications; the committee asked for further analysis on the relationship between adopted budget amounts and actual program expenditures and requested clearer public communication about the application status while staff works through the backlog.