DATE: March 26, 2025
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers
FROM: Financial Services Department
TITLE: PAYMENT TO CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR'S OFFICE OF EMERGENCY SERVICES DUE TO DEOBLIGATION RESULTING FROM ADJUSTMENTS ON PREVIOUSLY ELIGIBLE PROJECT COSTS
RECOMMENDATION
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Staff recommends that the City Council approve the payment to California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) in the amount of $203,564 due to deobligation resulting from an adjustment on previously eligible project costs; appropriate $203,564 from General Fund Unassigned Reserves; and authorize the City Manager to execute the payment upon receipt of all supporting documents.
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BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS
On March 13, 2020, the President of the United States declared a national emergency in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. On April 26, 2021, the City was awarded federal emergency funds to address food insecurity through a partnership with local restaurants and the Oceanside Kitchen Collaborative. This program, which operated from March 19, 2020 through June 10, 2020, provided 42,000 meals to vulnerable populations as part of the federal effort to mitigate the pandemic's immediate impacts on community health and economic stability.
Following a subsequent review by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the project was deemed ineligible due to the City's insufficient documentation to confirm the eligibility of the program's beneficiaries. At the time the funds were expended, there was limited guidance available regarding documentation requirements, leaving the City to operate without clear direction. As a result of this determination, the City is now required to return Cal OES the full amount of previously awarded funds.
FISCAL IMPACT
The reimbursement of the disaster assistance funds to Cal OES in the amount of $203,564 will be charged to the Non-Departmental Expenses account 170174101.5390. Staff is requesting to use General Fund Reserves in the amount of $2...
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