Union-Synder Community Action

Union-Synder Community Action, a U.S. local government entity based in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, operates as a federal grant recipient delivering volunteer income tax assistance (VITA), emergency food assistance, community services block grant (CSBG) programs, and AmeriCorps national service deployment across a two-county region in central Pennsylvania. The organization functions primarily as a sub-recipient (61% of recent awards) under federal pass-through grants administered by Pennsylvania state agencies and federal grantor bodies, with a smaller footprint as a prime grant recipient (39% of awards) directly from the Internal Revenue Service.

Union-Synder's customer concentration spans five federal agencies accounting for 75% of recent awards. The Department of Housing and Urban Development's Community Planning and Development office leads by award count with ten awards, followed by the Corporation for National and Community Service Office of Grants Management (seven awards, primarily AmeriCorps State grants), the Department of the Treasury's Internal Revenue Service (six awards, all VITA grants), the Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families (six awards), and the Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (four awards). As a prime grant recipient, Union-Synder has secured five consecutive VITA project grants from the Internal Revenue Service, each running October through September, with awards dated October 1, 2021 through October 1, 2025. Each VITA grant funds volunteer tax preparation services for low-to-moderate-income taxpayers, persons with disabilities, non-English speakers, Native Americans, rural residents, military families, and elderly individuals, with the organization required to file at least 90% of returns for taxpayers at or below earned income tax credit thresholds and achieve 100% of production goals.

Sub-recipient work concentrates in three program areas. Union-Synder receives Community Services Block Grant funding through the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development to address community needs (awards dated January 2023, January 2024, and April 2026). Emergency Food Assistance grants flow through the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (nine sub-awards spanning 2022 through 2024). AmeriCorps State grants, passed through Pennsylvania's AmeriCorps office (PennSERVE) and the Corporation for National and Community Service, support recruitment and deployment of AmeriCorps members in community service positions; the organization has received AmeriCorps State sub-awards for grant years 2021–2022, 2022–2023, and 2023–2024. Housing-related sub-awards from HUD support case management, housing search and counseling, and financial assistance across a two-county continuum of care region. A Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry sub-award addresses unemployment compensation fraud prosecution (awarded November 2024, with a prior 2023 sub-award noted). Combined dollars obligated across 44 total awards (prime and sub) total $7.5 million. One award reaches ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, indicating minimal near-term recompete exposure.