Orange County accepts small HomeARC correction, adjusts 2025 CDBG and HOME entitlements

Orange County's Education & Economic Development Committee voted June 16 to accept a small correction to its Home Investment Partnerships Program (HomeARC) allocation and to revise the county's 2025 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME entitlement amounts after receiving formal notice from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The action matters because HUD's corrected allocations change the county's 2025 entitlement figures and require the county to update its HUD action plan before HUD will execute the grant contract that puts funds into the countys line of credit.

Nicole Anderson, director for community development, told the committee HUD had found an error in its initial 2021 HomeARC formula and the county was receiving an extra amount described in the meeting as roughly $6,000 above the allocation already in the county's accounts. The committee voted to accept that additional HomeARC funding.

Separately, the committee approved a motion to adjust Orange County's 2025 entitlement allocations to match HUD's actual award letter. The agenda and staff presentation listed a proposed funding decrease for CDBG of $154,510 and a decrease for HOME of $89,619.82; the agenda line gave a combined total decrease in the amount recorded as "$244001.29.82." Staff said they expect the change to have little effect on approved 2025 projects because older funds will cover commitments already in the 2025 action plan.

Legislator Bennett asked whether the county had actually received funds or only the award letter; staff clarified that the award letter provides the official entitlement amounts, which allows the county to submit a revised action plan to HUD, obtain an executed grant contract, and then access the funds through HUD's line of credit.

The committee voted to accept the additional HomeARC amount and to adopt the entitlement adjustments that staff presented.