Government Insider | May 17, 2022

Intel Seeks Ohio Suppliers

Intel is looking for Ohio suppliers as it prepares to break ground on its new fab in the Silicon Heartland. A portal has been created to help facilitate local supplier engagement for the company’s newest manufacturing investments. Suppliers have been grouped into eight categories including Employee Services, Logistics and Transportation, and Factory Materials.

The portal is available and provides information on how to become an Intel supplier. Needs for the Licking County “mega-project” will only increase as the project gets underway. Companies looking to establish a foothold with Intel are encouraged to engage sooner than later.

Intel Ohio Supplier Portal: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/corporate-responsibility/intel-in-ohio.html

Ohio First Responder Recruitment, Retention and Resilience Program

Gov. Mike DeWine announced that the Ohio Emergency Management Agency (Ohio EMA) is now accepting applications for the new Ohio First Responder Recruitment, Retention and Resilience Program, which will provide nearly $70 million in grant funding for the recruitment and wellness needs of Ohio’s first responders.

The $70 million in grants is part of the $250 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding that DeWine and the General Assembly dedicated to first responders to help them counter various pressing issues exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, including increased stress and decreased staffing levels. Law enforcement, fire, and emergency medical services agencies are among the first responder entities eligible for funding. The application for the program is available on the Ohio Department of Public Safety’s website. The deadline to submit a grant application is Friday, June 17 at 5PM.

Administration Targets Investments in Appalachia

Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted announced details of their proposal to make a comprehensive investment in the Appalachian region of Ohio. The $500 million initiative would support local initiatives to revitalize downtown districts, improve the quality of life, and help rebuild the economies of Ohio’s 32 Appalachian counties.

The $500 million proposal, dubbed “Ohio BUILDS – Small Communities, Big Impact – A Plan for Appalachia,” would infuse funding into three priority areas of restoring historic downtowns, improving community health, and rebuilding the local workforce.

The proposal includes a $50 million planning phase to allow Appalachian communities and regional partnerships to develop plans that incorporate each of the three funding priorities. Following the planning, $450 million in implementation grants would be invested to help communities and regional groups carry out qualifying projects to rejuvenate the region and stimulate economic growth.

The program will focus on supporting targeted solutions that affect quality of life, such as water infrastructure improvements, broadband expansion, brownfield redevelopment, the demolition of blighted buildings, and more.

Columbus Seeking Feedback on Electric Vehicle (EV) Ready Parking Ordinance

The City of Columbus is exploring the adoption of a standardized, equitable electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure strategy that would significantly increase the number of, and access to, EV charging stations community-wide.

EV Ready Parking Ordinances ensure that newly created parking lots and garages have EV charging stations installed and/or have the ability to be easily and affordably installed in the future. Columbus’ draft Equitable EV Ready Parking Ordinance is a reflection of the input provided by the EV Ready Roundtable participants and current and projected EV adoption and charging infrastructure data.

The informational webinars will provide an overview of the EV Ready Parking Ordinance and proposed Zoning Code amendment. For more information, please visit the city’s website: https://www.columbus.gov/sustainable/evreadyparking/

City of Columbus Launches Financial Counseling as a Public Service

First Lady Shannon Ginther and Columbus City Council President Pro Tempore Elizabeth C. Brown announced the launch of the Columbus Financial Empowerment Center (FEC), which provides free financial counseling with licensed professionals for all Columbus-area adults. The Columbus FEC is supported by the national Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund) and managed in partnership with Jewish Family Services.

The Columbus FEC offers one-on-one counseling sessions for individuals age 18 and older to learn and expand core financial skills such as opening a bank account, increasing credit scores, navigating loans, negotiating with creditors, increasing savings, planning for major purchases and more. Participants will have the option to schedule follow-up appointments with the same financial counselor to build trust, strengthen continuity and better ensure a personalized experience.

Year one of the Columbus FEC is supported by a $150,000 grant from the CFE Fund and $150,000 from the city’s general fund. Subsequent years of the program will receive up to $100,000 from the CFE Fund and a 1:2 match from the city. More information about the Columbus FEC can be found at www.columbusfec.org or by calling (614) 237-9675.

$1.4M Franklin County Grant for Community Health Equity Partners

Franklin County Board of Commissioners approved Community Partnership grants to six local community health agencies totaling $1,397,989.  The grants are to be administered by the commissioners’ Community Partnership program, which oversees grants to local agencies that seek to create good-paying jobs for residents and economic development opportunities for businesses, protect the environment, stabilize families and children, and further the community’s access to affordable healthcare.  Specifically, this set of grants supports the commissioner’s equity initiatives by funding agencies that will provide more equitable access to healthcare or positive health outcomes for residents.

Afterschool Reimbursement Program Open for Families

Families who are interested in finding afterschool or summer educational programs for their children and meet income criteria can apply to the state for an account that will provide up to $500 per child. The Ohio Department of Education (ODE) opened applications last month for families to request an Afterschool Child Enrichment (ACE) Education Savings Account, a program created in the biennial budget with federal funding.

Families earning at or below 300 percent of the federal poverty level can request accounts for students between the ages of 6 and 18 who attend public or private schools or are home educated by their parents.

The money can go toward the likes of before and after school programming, day camps, tutoring, music lessons, museum admissions and other educational purposes. Organizations offering such programs can apply to become qualified providers in the ACE program.

More information about the ACE program is available at https://education.ohio.gov/OhioACE.

Dez Bryant
Vice President of Government Relations
dezbryant@columbus.org