Outreach Grants

The Department of Commerce is strengthening communities across Washington by funding community organizations that serve historically disadvantaged populations to conduct outreach and assist community members in applying for state and federal assistance programs.

Outreach Grants funding update

Commerce’s review and award decisions are delayed because of the substantial number of applications received. More than 130 applications were submitted. Commerce will announce apparent successful bidders in September.

How are communities using the funding?

Multicultural Child and Family Hope Center

The Multicultural Child and Family Hope Center uses its Commerce Outreach grant to add staff to reach Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQIA+, immigrant, homeless, and foster care populations in Pierce County. Those outreach workers will provide connections to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Working Connections Childcare, Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), housing and other similar state and federal programs. Multicultural is a BIPOC-led organization that aims to build rapport with clients, especially those historically disenfranchised from public services.

Pacific County

Pacific County is subcontracting with three small organizations that have relationships with communities. Their partners are Pacific County Immigrant Support to hire Promotoras (Spanish-speaking community health workers), Pacific County Voices Uniting, which is outreaching to low-income Shoalwater and Chinook Tribal members and members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and Peninsula Poverty Response will outreach to those who are homeless and at-risk low-income seniors. All partners aim to increase applications to public services related to housing, employment and food assistance during the contract period.

Better Health Tomorrow

Better Health Tomorrow is working in Spokane, Ferry, Pend Oreille, Stevens, Lincoln, and Adams County to add peer community navigators. They partner with local groups like American Indian Community Center, the Carl Maxey Black Business and Professional Alliance, and the Hispanic Business and Professional Association. Better Health is working as a regional hub for smaller by-and-for partners to improve their outreach capability and ability to quantify and report the work and grow the financial independence of small BIPOC and other by-and-for organizations in eastern Washington.

Voices of Tomorrow

Voices of Tomorrow is a non-profit organization providing social services to East African and other immigrant and refugee families in King County. Voices of Tomorrow connects families to programs like TANF, SNAP, Medicaid, Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), kinship care, and rent assistance. Many referrals are from their staff working with families in the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) or the Seattle Preschool Program.

Grant Recipients

Rod’s House

County location: Yakima
Subgrantees: Yakima County
Grant award: $683,870
https://rodshouse.org/

Lutheran Community Services

County location: Snohomish, King, Pierce, Clark
Subgrantees: Korean Women’s Association
Grant award: $630,000
https://lcsnw.org/office/location/washington/

Columbia River Mental Health

County location: Clark
Subgrantees: none
Grant award: $600,000
https://crmhs.org/

Opportunities Industrialization Center

County location: Grant
Subgrantees: None
Grant award: $600,000
https://www.yvoic.org/about/

Voices of Tomorrow

County location: King
Subgrantees: None
Grant award: $650,000
https://tomorrowvoices.org/

Pacific County

County location: Pacific
Subgrantees: Pacific County Voices Uniting, Peninsula Poverty Response, Pacific County Immigrant Support, Promotoras
Grant award: $600,000
https://www.co.pacific.wa.us/

Better Health Together

County location: Spokane, Ferry, Pend Oreille, Stevens, Lincoln, Adams
Subgrantees: The American Indian Community Center; The Carl Maxey Center/Black Business and Professional Alliance; The Health and Justice Recovery Alliance; The Hispanic Business and Professional Association; Latinos en Spokane; The MLK Center; Peer Spokane and Rural Resources
Grant award: $600,000
https://www.betterhealthtogether.org/

Yakima Neighborhood Service Center

County location: Yakima
Subgrantees: none
Grant award: $600,000
https://www.ynhs.org/

Trac Associates

County location: King, Pierce, Snohomish
Subgrantees: none
Grant award: $590,917
http://www.tracassoc.com/about-us.html

Benton Franklin Workforce Development Council

County location: Benton
Subgrantees: none
Grant award: $530,000
https://www.bentonfranklinwdc.com/

Chinese Information and Service Center (CISC)

County location: King
Subgrantees: none
Grant award: $530,000
https://cisc-seattle.org/

The Noble Foundation

County location: Clark, Cowlitz
Subgrantees: none
Grant award: $600,450
https://thenoblefoundation.org/

Rainbow Center

County location: Pierce
Subgrantees: none
Grant award: $388,087
https://www.rainbowcntr.org/

SNAP

County location: Spokane
Subgrantees: none
Grant award: $358,277
https://www.snapwa.org/

Multicultural Child and Family Hope Center

County location: Pierce
Subgrantees: none
Grant award: $349,000

Statutory Authority

2022 operating budget proviso, sec. 132 sub 94:

“(94) $4,000,000 of the general fund-state appropriation for fiscal year 2022 and $6,000,000 of the general fund-state appropriation for fiscal year 2023 are provided solely for grants to community organizations that serve historically disadvantaged populations to conduct outreach and assist community members in applying for state and federal assistance programs, including but not limited to those administered by the departments of social and health services; commerce; and children, youth, and families. By June 31 [sic], 2023, the department must provide to the appropriate committees of the legislature a detailed report of the activities in this subsection. The report must include, but is not limited to:
(a) A list of grant recipients, their location, and the grant amount each received;
(b) Input from grantees on best practices for engagement with populations experiencing systemic inequities;
(c) Suggestions from the department and grant recipients on how to engage populations experiencing systemic inequities with future programming; and
(d) Other information and recommendations on need for this type of outreach work in future grant programs.”