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County councilors debate use of contingency funds to support Food Bank of Delaware and local nonprofits
Summary
New Castle County council members debated three resolutions to allocate contingency funds to local nonprofits — Food Bank of Delaware, Good Neighbors Home Repair and Charity Crossing Inc. — with supporters citing urgent need and opponents warning of precedent and lack of transparent allocation criteria.
Council members discussed three separate resolutions on June 10 that would use New Castle County’s council contingency fund to make direct grants to local nonprofits.
Councilwoman Durham introduced Resolution 25-103, a request to allocate $25,000 from the County Council Contingency Fund to the Food Bank of Delaware, saying she moved the measure after federal food assistance was reduced and the Food Bank told council it lost roughly $1.1 million in federal support. “Food is a pretty basic need for all of our constituents,” Durham said.
Supporters, including Councilman Kevin Kaneko, said the Food Bank stepped up during the pandemic and still distributes millions of pounds of food to county residents. “They were there in our time of need. And now the Food Bank of Delaware is in a time of need,” Kaneko said, noting local distribution and partnerships with many county agencies.
Opponents warned that using the contingency fund in this way lacks a fair, competitive process and risks setting a precedent. Councilman Carter and Councilman Jay (last name used in transcript as Smiley) argued the contingency fund should be reserved for unforeseen county needs or be distributed through a transparent grant process. Carter noted the county is facing a structural shortfall and said diverting contingency dollars could undermine budget priorities. “If we’re gonna make money available to nonprofits, we have to fairly and equitably open it up to all nonprofits,” Carter said.
Council members extended those same concerns to two companion resolutions. Resolution 25-104 would allocate contingency funding to Good Neighbors Home Repair (request amount listed in committee discussion as $25,000). Councilman Tackett summarized program-level details provided by Good Neighbors, saying last year the organization assisted 136 families and that much of the client base is elderly or low-income; he described typical per-household repairs at roughly $5,000.
Resolution 25-105 would allocate contingency funding to Charity Crossing Inc.; the request amount was discussed in committee but recorded figures were inconsistent in the transcript. Supporters said Charity Crossing has used donated funds and volunteers to deliver food and backpacks countywide and that it runs without paid staff.
Chad Robinson, vice president of external affairs for the Food Bank of Delaware, addressed the committee during public comment and asked the council to approve the Food Bank allocation. He said federal cuts will force local agencies to serve more residents and that the Food Bank distributed more than 4 million pounds of food in New Castle County last year. “Food insecurity is at the root of many of the issues that you all are talking about,” Robinson told the committee.
The committee discussion repeatedly returned to two questions: whether use of contingency funds in this way was legally permissible and whether the council should adopt a formal, equitable application process for nonprofit grants. County attorneys and several council members confirmed the council has discretion under the existing appropriation for a contingency fund to make grants to outside organizations; opponents nevertheless urged a formal grant process and urged reserving contingency funds for unforeseen county liabilities.
No final vote on the three contingency resolutions is recorded in the committee transcript; members said the measures would proceed to the full County Council for a vote. Several council members said they will consider contributing from their individual council accounts if the contingency resolutions do not pass.
Effect and next steps: the committee recorded debate and public comment and referred the resolutions to a full council vote. Supporters asked the council to approve the immediate allocations to respond to food insecurity; opponents requested clearer selection criteria and stronger protections for county budget stability.
Ending: The committee moved on to other business after public comment; the transcript does not record final committee votes on the three contingency resolutions.
