Palm Beach County Community Services Self-Sufficiency Project
2023 NACo Achievement Award Winner
Palm Beach County, Fla., FL
Best In Category
About the Program
Category: Human Services (Best in Category)
Year: 2023
The impact of the COVID 19 pandemic and the subsequent response, continued throughout 2021 and 2022. Since 2020, the demand for Palm Beach County Community Services Department (CSD) rental and utility assistance remained enormous. The expended funding levels were 7-8 times the typical annual amount. Anticipating the imminent reduction of pandemic funding, CSD began to consider various strategies to curtail the demand for assistance. One strategy implemented, targeted a small cohort of program recipients based on set criteria. The cohort was invited to participate in a program with the goal of moving them higher on the self-sufficiency spectrum. The project was entitled, the Self-Sufficiency Project (SSP).