Miami-Dade Community Action and Human Services details services, warns of looming grant cuts

Sonia Grice, director of the Community Action and Human Services Department, told the Miami‑Dade County Government Operations and Fiscal (GET) committee that her department runs the county’s largest social‑service programs and faces “a significant reduction in grant funding” from federal and state sources.

Grice said Community Action and Human Services — which she described as nationally accredited and serving all 13 county commission districts — operates one of the nation’s largest Head Start programs, a summer meals program and four state‑certified domestic violence shelters. “Our mission goes beyond providing services. We’re here to ignite empowerment through comprehensive support and unwavering commitment,” Grice said.

The department presented a string of program statistics the director said illustrate its scope: roughly 13,500 children served by the summer meals program at about 340 sites; more than 8,750 children receiving school‑readiness support; more than 22,000 tenants and landlords aided with eviction‑diversion services; close to 300 evictions prevented; and roughly 17,000 households receiving utility assistance. Grice also highlighted transitional housing, rapid re‑housing and a coordinated victims assistance center for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking.

Why it matters: Commissioners pressed Grice about funding and staffing because roughly two‑thirds of the department’s funding comes from federal and state grants, she said, and several commissioners warned that pending cuts at those levels could force reductions in services. Commissioner Cohen Higgins asked for specifics about grant losses and about whether the department had a plan to absorb cuts; Grice said staff and county lobbyists were actively monitoring changes and maintaining contact with funders.

Committee members also pressed practical questions about staffing and program delivery. During the presentation a commissioner corrected an apparent transcript confusion: committee members stated that the department has about 665 employees (commissioners referenced “665” during the Q&A). Grice emphasized most staff provide direct services and outlined efforts to reduce intake time for clients through a new smartphone referral process: she said the new intake approach cut average intake time from about two hours to under one hour and produced a further 36% decrease in wait time in recent figures.

Commissioners asked whether the department’s eviction‑diversion figures were from a single office. Grice said the eviction‑diversion program cited in the presentation is housed in the Office of Housing Advocacy and partners with legal services; she said the mayor’s separate eviction diversion office also exists and they partner as needed. Chief operating officer Jimmy Morales and an administration representative confirmed the Office of Housing Advocacy oversees agencies that provide eviction diversion services directly.

Grice described large planned projects that use county bond funding, including a project she called the “hostess center,” which she said will add 148 residential units (82 designated affordable) and 50 supportive housing units in Wynwood; she said general‑obligation bond dollars will fund portions of that project.

The presentation concluded with an explicit appeal for continued county support. “Continue investing — our clients are also our neighbors,” Grice said.

What’s next: Commissioners said they will monitor grant decisions closely as the county prepares its budget and requested follow‑up information about specific grant impacts and outreach strategies to increase public awareness of the department’s services.