Council committee reviews $30,000 transfer from admin to programming in emergency rental assistance fund

Budget staff told the UED committee that they will transfer $30,000 from the administrative portion of the Emergency Rental Assistance Program subfund into program services so the funds can be expended before the grant's September 2025 deadline.

Jared Moore and grants staff said the Emergency Rental Assistance dollars were nonrecurring COVID-era funds with a statutory or programmatic spending end date; at the outset the grants team estimated an administrative allowance and is now reconciling the budget as the program winds down. Staff said the $30,000 appears to come from staffing savings or unfilled positions and will be reprogrammed to the service side of the grant so it can be obligated to assist households.

Committee members asked whether the pattern of underspending on admin could represent a sustainable efficiency; staff said the funds were nonrecurring and could be replaced only by applying for other grants such as CDBG. Staff also confirmed that any leftover admin dollars are carried over into the next fiscal year and reprogrammed into projects on the department's website.

No vote was recorded in the committee during the April 9 discussion; the item was presented as an ordinance amendment to transfer appropriations between projects and account groups within the Emergency Rental Assistance Program subfund.

Committee members said they welcomed the reallocation because it would put additional dollars into direct assistance for renters, but asked staff to monitor year-over-year trends to ensure competitive grant administration and to avoid under-resourcing essential oversight functions.