Emergency Food & Shelter Program

Important Update: Phase 42 Funding on Hold

United Way facilitates the Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) on behalf of the Snohomish County EFSP Local Board.  

In 2024, Snohomish County was awarded $336,360 in the EFSP Phase 42 Allocation. 

In January 2025, an Executive Order placed a temporary funding freeze on all federal financial assistance programs. To date, program funds for EFSP Phase 42 have not yet been released. 

The National EFSP Board is working closely with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to better understand and respond to the anticipated impact on the EFSP and the program participants. 

 

 

Emergency Food & Shelter Program

   

The Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) began in 1983. The program was created by Congress to help meet the needs of hungry and homeless people throughout the United States and its territories by allocating federal funds for the provision of food and shelter. The program is governed by a National Board and chaired by a representative of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).  

EFSP funds are open to organizations helping people who are experiencing hunger and homelessness. EFSP funds must be used in feeding, sheltering, and providing rental assistance efforts only.   

In FY 2023, FEMA awarded the Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) National Board the $130 million made available under the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Action, 2023 (Pub. L. No. 117-382). This funding is Phase 41 of the program and is not the supplemental humanitarian relief funding.   

The Snohomish County Emergency Food and Shelter Program Local Board is the entity responsible for allocation of the $329,867.00 in Federal dollars that have been awarded to Snohomish County for Phase 41. In March of 2024, the local board announced the Phase 41 Application Submission Process and selected the following organization who have a demonstrated capability to provide emergency food and/or shelter:

  • The Salvation Army 
  • Everett Gospel Mission 
  • Volunteers of America WW 
  • Pathways for Women (YWCA) 
  • Domestic Violence Services of Snohomish County 
  • Tulip Tribes 
  • Housing Hope  
  • Senior Services of Snohomish County – DBA Homage Senior Services 
  • Interfaith Association of the Northwest Washington 
  • United Way of Snohomish County 
  • Cocoon House 
  • Monroe Gospel Women’s Mission 
  • Sound Pathways 
  • Millennia Ministries 
  • LINC NW 
  • Washington West African Center  
  • Everett Public Schools Family Resource Center 
  • Bridgeways 

 

EFSP APPLICATION 

The Emergency Food & Shelter Program is not currently seeking applications. 
 
For questions regarding EFSP or the application process, please contact Susan Gustafson, Director of Programs, at snocoefsp@uwsc.org.  

Locally, EFSP is administered by United Way of Snohomish County. Funding allocation decisions are made by a local EFSP board of 13 organizations. 

Nationally, EFSP is a federal program administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and has been entrusted through the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 (PL 100-77) “to supplement and expand ongoing efforts to provide shelter, food and supportive services” for hungry and homeless people across the nation.