The County Of Lake Illinois

The County Of Lake Illinois, a U.S. local government entity headquartered in Waukegan, operates as a prime recipient of federal grants across housing, homelessness, workforce development, and community development programs, with no federal contracting activity. The county acts as a grant recipient (52% of recent awards) and sub-recipient (48%), receiving funds from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Labor, and related federal agencies.

The county's federal footprint centers on HUD Community Planning and Development (CPD) grant programs. As a prime recipient, Lake County administers the Continuum of Care Program (CFDA 14.267), which funds permanent supportive housing, rapid rehousing, transitional housing, supportive services, and homeless management information systems. Recent CoC awards include a $175,483 project grant awarded October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026; a $103,300 project grant from September 1, 2025, through August 31, 2026; and a $147,949 project grant awarded October 1, 2024, through September 30, 2025. The county also holds a $1.463 million Home Investment Partnerships Program (CFDA 14.239) formula grant awarded September 16, 2025, running through September 30, 2034, supporting affordable housing acquisition, rehabilitation, construction, and tenant-based rental assistance. A $221,534 Emergency Solutions Grant Program (CFDA 14.231) formula award from September 16, 2025, through September 15, 2027, funds street outreach, emergency shelter operations, homelessness prevention, rapid rehousing, and HMIS activities. The county holds multiple Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) awards under CFDA 14.228 running through 2030–2033.

Customer concentration is steep: HUD's Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development accounts for 173 of the county's 358 total awards (84% coverage threshold met with top five customers). The Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service places 62 awards; the Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families places 47 combined awards across multiple sub-agencies; and the Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration places 17 awards. The county serves 21 distinct federal customer agencies in total. As a sub-recipient, Lake County receives pass-through funding from Illinois state agencies — the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity (Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Rapid Response grants, apprenticeship programs), the Illinois Department of Human Services (WIC, substance abuse prevention, mental health services, personal responsibility education, social services block grants), the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (victim assistance, antiterrorism emergency assistance), and the Illinois Department of Transportation (highway safety, impaired driving prevention).

Activity volume shows growth through 2024 then contraction: 12 awards in 2022, 75 in 2023, 74 in 2024, 31 in 2025, and 6 in 2026. Seven awards (representing a subset of the $213 million combined obligated dollars) reach ultimate completion in the next twenty-four months. The county's corporate structure lists subsidiaries including the Lake County Health Department & Community Health Center and the Mabas Divisions 4 & 5 SRT Joint Administrative Council, though these appear as administrative designations rather than operationally distinct entities. The county directly administers or subcontracts HUD and workforce-development grant funds to nonprofit providers, developers, and community partners — including a $2 million CDBG-funded rehabilitation project converting a former motel at 3633 N. Lewis Avenue in Waukegan into a homeless shelter (metal doors, gypsum board, flooring, plumbing, and electrical line-items).