FEMA Announces $117 Million for Emergency Food and Shelter Program to Fight Hunger, Homelessness

WASHINGTON -- Today, FEMA awarded $117 million to help fight hunger and homelessness in America, which will improve community responses by providing funding to numerous local organizations across the country to lift people out of dire conditions.

Congress appropriated $117 million through the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2024 to FEMA’s Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP). By law, FEMA must award the full $117 million to the program’s National Board. The National Board then allocates the funds to local organizations dedicated to feeding, sheltering and providing critical resources to people with economic emergencies. The funds are used to provide shelter, food and supportive services to individuals and families who are experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, hunger or homelessness. 

The program’s National Board allocates funds to local boards in qualifying jurisdictions using the most recent national population, unemployment and poverty data. Local boards then advertise the availability of grant funding in their communities, review applications and award grants to organizations that provide services to those in need. Services can include: 

• Food, in the form of served meals or groceries.
• Lodging in a mass shelter or hotel.
• Rental or mortgage assistance to prevent evictions.
• Utility payment to prevent service cut-offs.
• Transportation costs associated with the provision of food or shelter.
• Supplies and equipment necessary to feed or shelter people.

The National Board is chaired by FEMA, with representatives from American Red Cross, Catholic Charities USA, The Jewish Federations of North America, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, The Salvation Army and United Way Worldwide. United Way Worldwide, the National Board’s Secretariat and Fiscal Agent, are responsible for the day-to-day administration of the program. 

The Emergency Food and Shelter Program has helped make our nation more resilient by distributing more than $4.4 billion to over 14,000 human service agencies in more than 2,500 communities across the country. This collaborative effort between the private and public sectors has helped provide food, shelter and other critical support to hundreds of thousands of people during some of the most challenging periods in their lives.

This program is separate from the former EFSP-Humanitarian program, which assisted migrants encountered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at the southern border. Migrant assistance is now provided through the Shelter and Services Program.

For more information, including how funds are made available by the EFSP National Board to local service providers, visit the EFSP Website (unitedway.org).