Oakland County water office presents outreach resources, emergency relief fund backed by ARPA

Alyssa Taube, the community engagement representative from the Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner's office, introduced herself to the Farmington Hills City Council on Feb. 9 and described outreach materials and assistance programs residents can use for water-billing emergencies.

Taube described two programs administered through United Way: the residential assistance program with income limits and an emergency relief fund intended to help households that experience sudden hardship (for example, a job loss or illness) and do not qualify for the income‑based program. "This, we call the emergency relief fund because this is for people who don't fall into that income category," she said.

When asked by a councilmember about the source of the emergency-relief funding, Taube said the Oakland County Board of Commissioners provided $200,000 in ARPA funds a few years ago to start the program and that applications and direction between the programs are coordinated through United Way. She also offered customized communications materials to the city (flyers, social posts, web pages) and encouraged council and staff to invite her office to community events to help residents understand water-infrastructure topics.

Taube emphasized practical benefits: keeping households current on water bills helps avoid more expensive infrastructure repairs later, she said. She closed by leaving resource folders and a QR code for the council and asked that local events include the county's outreach presence to help residents access help when needed.