Federal lobbyist: one Shelby County community project included in FY25 appropriations, others encouraged for resubmission

Shannetta Paschal, the county's federal lobbyist with Cornerstone, gave an update on FY2025 appropriations, saying Congress returned to focus on a continuing resolution and that full appropriations are likely to be decided after the November elections.

"We are now back and Congress is back in session as of today," Paschal said, explaining lawmakers' near-term focus on keeping the government funded through Sept. 30 and completing agency funding later in the year. She told commissioners that Shelby County submitted three community funding projects to Representative Cohen; "one of them has been accepted by the House Committee on Appropriations," she said, naming the Youth Family Violence center which House staff renamed the Shelby County crime reduction initiatives program and for which the committee requested $1,000,000.

Paschal cautioned that the full appropriation bills that fund most agencies typically follow the continuing resolution process and probably will not be finalized until after the November election. She recommended commissioners prepare detailed applications for next year — budget descriptions, project leads, evidence of local/state support and community letters — to improve competitiveness. "We typically like to send 2 or 3 letters of support," she said, urging local leaders and partner organizations to provide statements showing community benefit.

Commissioners asked specific questions about which of last year's priorities produced funding; the chair pointed to a one-time list of awards that included investments in mental-health infrastructure, education projects, and violence-prevention grants. Paschal and commissioners agreed to work offline to refine requests for FY2026 and to gather targeted support letters and partnerships that could improve the county's odds in the earmark-like community project process.