Relief funds OK’ed for summer meal programs, more

State Rep. Smith says feeding hungry children must remain priority

State Rep. Kent Smith, DEuclid, recently announced state approval of another round of federal funding to support Ohio’s efforts to control the novel coronavirus pandemic in school districts for the fall semester.

“I was very pleased to learn that the state Controlling Board took steps to provide assistance to a variety of programs helping needy Ohioans during the COVID-19 outbreak,” Smith said. “One of those, the student summer meal program, was legislation (House Bill 80) that I sponsored during the prior General Assembly. I am glad we can still work to feed hungry Ohio children even during a pandemic.

“We must always work to ensure no child is hungry in Ohio,” Smith added. “As astronaut Buzz Aldrin once said, ‘If we can conquer space, we can conquer childhood hunger.’”

According to a news release, the Controlling Board last month approved federal funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act to the following agencies and programs to respond to the COVID-19 crisis:

• $175 million for Ohio’s local governments

• $97.5 million to the Ohio Department of Health to cover costs of expanded COVID-19 testing

• $30 million to the Ohio Department of Education to reimburse schools for providing meals to students during the summer and $18 million in grants to help offset ongoing costs local school districts are faced with

• $30 million to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services to fund the Child Care Grant Support to aid child care providers that choose to maintain reduced ratios and class sizes, as well as $9 million to support childcare costs for school aged children impacted by remote learning and $1 million to fund the Trauma Informed Certificate ensuring all children service providers are trauma informed in order to receive federal funds.

In addition, the Controlling Board approved changes to the BroadbandOhio Connectivity Grant, which helps school districts offset costs of virtual learning by removing the original matching requirement.

Initial feedback indicated that the local matching requirement created a barrier for many school districts, the release stated. Furthermore, $578,448 in existing state funds were approved for use by Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office for precinct election officials training ahead of the November election. Absent from the board’s agenda, however, was the approval for the secretary of state to use funds to prepay return postage for voting materials, which the secretary said he would then request of the board.

Smith noted that for months Democrats have urged LaRose to use existing authority to pay return postage for both ballot applications and ballots, an action they say is critically important as more Ohioans turn to mail-in voting amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

Smith