Federal Formula Grant Award Summary

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service awarded $2,579,809 to the Ohio Department of Job & Family Services (ODJFS) under the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) Administrative Costs program (CFDA 10.568) for the fiscal year October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026. This formula grant provides funding to support the administrative, storage, and distribution costs necessary for ODJFS to manage and coordinate emergency food assistance networks across Ohio. The allocation is determined through a congressionally mandated formula that weights each state's proportional share of persons living below the poverty level (60 percent) and unemployed individuals (40 percent).

Under federal-state agreement requirements, ODJFS must make at least 40 percent of the awarded administrative funds available to emergency feeding organizations, including food banks, food pantries, and soup kitchens, either through direct grants or expenditures on their behalf. The funding supports the operational infrastructure required to issue USDA Foods to low-income populations across Ohio, with ODJFS serving as the state distributing agency responsible for channeling federal resources to local emergency food assistance entities. Funds are provided on an as-needed basis for actual expenditures throughout the fiscal year, with any unused funds returned to the federal government for reallocation according to the legislatively mandated formula.