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Committee backs extension and increase of San Francisco-Marin Food Bank COVID relief grant
Summary
The Budget & Finance Committee voted to forward to the full Board a resolution authorizing an amendment to the city's grant with the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank to extend the food assistance program through Dec. 31, 2021 and increase funding; the Budget Analyst recommended a lower not-to-exceed amount to reflect spending.
The Budget and Finance Committee on March 10 recommended that the full Board approve a First Amendment to the city's grant with the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank to continue COVID-19 food assistance through Dec. 31, 2021.
Fanny Lapitan, program manager with the Human Services Agency, told the committee the extension "will be paying for, over 485,000 additional grocery bags to be distributed through December 31." She described two program components: Pantry at Home, which delivers groceries to vulnerable residents who are age 65 or older, have underlying health conditions, or cannot attend a pantry; and Pop-Up Pantry, which provides weekly distribution sites across neighborhoods. Lapitan said Pantry at Home delivers about "23,000 bags per month to about 4,4500 consumers" and Pop-Up Pantry provides about "56,000 bags per month to, close to 18,000 consumers," as stated in the committee record.
Sevin Campbell of the Budget Legislative Analyst's Office reviewed spending trends and recommended amending the resolution's not-to-exceed amount to reflect actual program costs. Campbell proposed a reduction from figures in the staff report to a proposed amount of $15,526,825 to align with documented spending needs; the committee voted to accept the BLA recommendation.
Supervisor participants pressed program staff on staffing and cultural access. When Supervisor (identified in the transcript as) Amar asked whether delivery and distribution rely on volunteers, Lapitan said the program uses a mix of volunteers and paid staff and that the city is meeting current demand without a wait list. Supervisor Asha Safaei raised concerns about cultural competency and waiting in line; Sean Brooks of the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank said the program "is distributing about 57,000 bags of food, weekly" and that the food bank prioritizes fresh, unprepared produce so recipients can prepare culturally appropriate meals, seeks culturally appropriate donated items when available and earmarks them for sites serving those populations, and may use purchased-food dollars to supplement donations where needed.
No members of the public spoke on the item. The committee voted to amend the resolution per the BLA recommendation and then voted to forward the item to the full Board with a positive recommendation (three ayes recorded). The committee record indicates the amendment changes the not-to-exceed grant amount to reflect actual spending; the full Board will consider the resolution on March 16, 2021.
