OCS DCL-24-06 Resources to Address Wildfire and Extreme Heat Conditions
Dear Colleague Letter
IM#: ACF-OCS-DCL-24-06
DATE: August 6, 2024
TO: Office of Community Services Grant Recipients
SUBJECT: Resources to Address Wildfire and Extreme Heat Conditions
ATTACHMENT(S): N/A
Dear Colleagues,
The Office of Community Services (OCS) reaffirms its commitment to providing maximum flexibility and access to resources to support vulnerable populations most at risk for the devastating impact of extreme heat conditions and wildfires across the country. Agencies receiving federal funding often grapple with leveraging the resources available to provide a prompt response during times of disaster, and understanding flexibilities can be a key factor in that response.
OCS understands the importance of tailoring responses to the needs of communities. Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting sector workers — about three-fourths of whom are farmworkers and laborers[1] — experience the highest fatal injury rate among all U.S. industries.[2] These workers protect the nation’s food supply and infrastructure even when extreme heat and wildfire smoke make conditions dangerous. OCS programs fund states, tribes, and territories that provide resources to organizations that serve outdoor workers, including seasonal and migrant farmworker communities. The flexibilities detailed in this letter may be particularly valuable to organizations serving outdoor workers as they struggle to adapt to increasingly frequent and severe wildfire and extreme heat events.
Extreme Heat
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 2023 was the world’s warmest year on record by far . Similarly, NOAA released their seasonal temperature outlook indicating the majority of states may experience above normal temperatures this summer. OCS funding can help mitigate the effects of extreme heat. The threat of extreme weather is disproportionately felt by communities of color, households with lower income, outdoor workers, and vulnerable populations, including communities living in “urban heat islands ” and those who are unable to afford adequate air-conditioning. As we face a summer with above-normal temperatures in most of the country, it is imperative to understand not only the impact of heat stress on the individuals, families, and communities we serve but also how grant recipients can utilize OCS programs and flexibilities to mitigate the impact of extreme weather and heat stress on vulnerable populations.
Wildfire
As noted in the Office of Climate Change and Health Equity’s Climate and Health Outlook , wildfire increases the risk for a diverse range of health outcomes from both the fire itself and smoke. Wildfire can cause burns through contact with flames and hot surfaces as well as chemical and electrical burns. Wildfire smoke can impact the health of people close to the fire and at distances far from fire-impacted areas, leading to adverse health impacts including respiratory issues like exacerbation of asthma and cardiovascular effects like heart failure. Wildfire is also one of the primary drivers of disaster displacement (PDF) in the United States. Wildfire smoke often coincides with heat waves, compounding the risks to people who don’t have air filtration or who spend large portions of the day outside such as outdoor workers. Understanding where there are disasters and how resources can be mobilized are keys to mitigating the negative impacts of disasters on communities.
The OCS Disaster Flexibilities Hub includes live weather activities and fire information, including active wildfire count, acres burned, cause of the fire if known, location, and an interactive geographic information system (GIS) map.
OCS Grant Recipient Flexibilities
OCS recognizes the need for grant recipients to have resources and flexibility with their funding at a moment’s notice to adequately respond to disasters and extreme conditions.
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
LIHEAP is a critical tool to reduce the health and safety risks of extreme heat and wildfire smoke for households with low incomes. LIHEAP can offer cooling assistance; summer crisis assistance; and help with the purchase, repair, loan, or replacement of cooling equipment for eligible individuals and families. In some cases, cooling equipment like air conditioners can provide air filtration, offering some protection against air pollutants like those found in wildfire smoke. LIHEAP can also provide access to cooling centers as well as coordinate targeted outreach to households at the greatest risk during periods of extreme heat, such as older adults, children, outdoor workers, and individuals with disabilities.
OCS has executed a layered strategy to strongly encourage LIHEAP grant recipients to use funds to assist vulnerable communities during periods of extreme heat. This has included issuing updated guidance on extreme heat flexibilities, releasing the LIHEAP and Extreme Heat Dashboard (an interactive GIS tool that tracks heat stress needs and cooling assistance trends across the country), and providing grant recipients with a variety of tools and technical assistance related to cooling assistance and extreme heat (including webinars on extreme heat and LIHEAP flexibilities, spotlight videos on cooling assistance programs, and a social media toolkit for cooling assistance outreach).
Community Services Block Grant (CSBG)
CSBG offers great flexibility to CSBG lead agencies and CSBG-eligible entities in times of disaster and extreme conditions. Because of the block grant structure, lead agencies may tailor their current programming and services to ensure responsiveness to communities struggling with natural disasters, extreme weather, and other challenges. As part of tailoring services, many local agencies serve as a central point of service, resource, and referral hub in times of disaster, and often a facility site during moments of displacement. To support this tailoring, OCS understands the importance of administrative flexibility, waivers, and eligibility determinations and outlines flexibilities in place during times of disaster to ensure that funding can be mobilized to support a community approach to serving individuals and families most at risk.
As a flexible funding source, CSBG funds can be mobilized to target expressed needs during times of disaster, including those of outdoor worker populations who are more likely to be exposed to the adverse impacts of wildfire smoke and extreme heat. Some of these services may include coordinating relief efforts, disseminating work supplies such as protective gear before or during a crisis, conducting trainings for employers on extreme heat and wildfire smoke illness prevention strategies, supporting restoration of care and learning for children following disasters, or serving as a resource hub for the individuals and families who see the disproportionate impact of these conditions. OCS also encourages CSBG grant recipients to collaborate with community health partners such as health centers and promotores de salud[3] to reach at-risk communities like farmworkers. Maintaining these flexibilities in the funding source and having access to the resources provide response infrastructure to these local agencies to not only continue this work but expand these supports to mitigate the adverse impacts.
Looking Ahead
OCS is committed to partnering with its grant recipients and encourages you to work closely with your federal staff for LIHEAP and CSBG for any training or technical assistance (TTA) and to ensure LIHEAP and CSBG funds are used for allowable activities[4].
During natural disasters, OCS will continue to reach out directly to states, tribes, and territories to share resources available to them to help ensure they provide responsive services for our nation’s most vulnerable.
While there is still much research underway on the long-term impacts at the intersection of extreme heat, wildfire, and occupational hazards, partnering with grant recipients provides an opportunity to address protective factors to support these populations. OCS will continue to provide additional TTA concerning flexibilities, supports, and resources to establish protective factors.
Thank you for your attention to these matters. OCS looks forward to continuing to provide high-quality services to OCS partners.
/s/
J. Janelle George
Deputy Director
Office of Community Services
[1] https://www.bls.gov/iag/tgs/iag11.htm#fatalities_injuries_and_illnesses
[2] https://www.bls.gov/charts/census-of-fatal-occupational-injuries/number-and-rate-of-fatal-work-injuries-by-industry.htm
[3]A frontline public health worker who is a trusted member of and/or has an especially close understanding of the community served. https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/omh-promotores-fact-sheet-nhhm-2023.pdf (hhs.gov) (PDF)
[4] 42 U.S.C. § 8621-8630 (LIHEAP) and Section 672 of the CSBG Act, 42 U.S.C. § 9901 (CSBG)