Pinellas County Commissioners are reassessing which social services should be funded by county government and which could instead rely on state dollars or private fundraising. Commissioner Chris Latvala has proposed ending the county’s Social Action Funding program, which provides grants to nonprofits offering community services.
An advisory board recommended $1.7 million for 17 organizations for fiscal year 2027. County Administrator Barry Burton recommended reducing that to about $667,000 for seven existing programs while eliminating funding for proposed programs.
Latvala wants to go further.
Pinellas County Commissioner Chris Latvala says nonprofits facing county funding cuts will get a one-year bridge as officials reconsider taxpayer support for social services. Photo provided.
“Our residents demand tax relief, so any way we can do that I think is prudent,” Latvala told the Catalyst. “A lot of the nonprofits do very good work, but a lot of them can get funding from the state or private fundraising. Property taxes shouldn’t have to do it.”
Pinellas County is considering a $5.14 billion fiscal year 2027 budget. The proposed General Fund would increase from $1.116 billion to $1.125 billion.
Latvala said existing Social Action Funding recipients would not lose county support immediately. Instead, the county would use reserves to fund them for one more year, giving organizations time to find alternative sources of revenue.
“We are not taking it to zero this year,” Latvala said. “We are doing a one year funding forum. We are using reserve funds. All the nonprofits get a year notice.”
Latvala raised the issue during the commission’s Sept. 3 budget work session, arguing that nonprofits could seek money through the Florida Legislature. He said he wants the county to get “out of the business of funding nonprofits” through the grant program and focus its budget on core services.
That would not necessarily end county contracts with nonprofits hired to provide specific services on the county’s behalf.
The commission’s Sept. 10 agenda, for example, included a five-year contract worth up to $7.26 million with 211 Tampa Bay Cares, doing business as First Contact, to administer emergency financial assistance for adults without minor children. Funding for the agreement is included in the proposed budget.
Commissioners also considered nearly $4 million in three-year agreements with St. Vincent de Paul CARES and 211 Tampa Bay Cares for rapid rehousing. Those programs provide housing navigation and case management for people experiencing homelessness and administer a direct-assistance funding pool.
Latvala said those contracts could face scrutiny this fall as commissioners examine whether the county is paying multiple organizations to provide similar services.
“Commissioner Scott and Eggers have brought up that we will be looking at those in the fall to see how many of those services are duplicated,” Latvala said. “If we have five or six programs attacking homelessness issues, then that’s something we have to look at. We don’t need a number of organizations doing the same thing.”
The Social Action Funding grants support programs serving seniors, children and other residents. Under Latvala’s proposal, existing recipients would have one final year of county funding before being expected to seek support elsewhere.