5153-25 Resolution on Behalf of the South Bend Common Council Consenting to the Renewal or Continuance of a Declaration of a Local Disaster Emergency

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BILL NO. 25-48 RESOLUTION NO. 5153-25 A RESOLUTION ON BEHALF OF THE SOUTH BEND COMMON COUNCIL CONSENTING TO THE RENEWAL OR CONTINUANCE OF A DECLARATION OF A LOCAL DISASTER EMERGENCY UNTIL ANY ORDER OR PROCLAMATION LAWFULLY TERMINATES THE LOCAL DISASTER EMERGENCY OR THE PASSAGE OF A RESOLUTION BY THE COMMON COUNCIL REVOKING THIS CONSENT WHEREAS, due to the ongoing lapse in appropriations within the federal government, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has ceased funding for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program ("SNAP")benefits effective November 1, 2025, creating an abrupt and unprecedented disruption in food assistance; and WHEREAS, it is estimated that approximately twenty thousand (20,000) South Bend residents rely on SNAP to meet their food needs, which is nearly one-fifth of the City's population, and this sudden lapse in benefits places a significant portion of South Bend's residents at imminent risk of food insecurity; and WHEREAS, this interruption of benefits threatens the health, safety, and welfare of South Bend residents, particularly the most vulnerable, and will strain local organizations already operating at or near capacity; and WHEREAS, the hardship created by this lapse in benefits will increase the demand for assistance from local government, charitable organizations, and community partners; and WHEREAS, the resulting food access emergency is expected to generate sudden distress and suffering in the South Bend community; and WHEREAS, while there has been pending litigation nationwide regarding the availability of federal funds to pay for SNAP benefits, the urgent needs of the community require immediate action to mitigate the distress and suffering generated by the food access emergency, rather than waiting for the outcome of litigation; and WHEREAS,Indiana Code 10-14-3-29 states that a"local disaster emergency"may be declared only by the principal executive officer of a political subdivision; and, WHEREAS,the same statute provides that a declaration of a"local disaster emergency" may not be continued or renewed for more than seven days except by or with the consent of the governing board of the political subdivision; and, WHEREAS,any order or proclamation declaring, continuing, or terminating a local disaster emergency shall be given prompt and general publicity and shall be filed promptly in the office of the Clerk of the political subdivision; and, WHEREAS, the effect of a declaration of"local disaster emergency": (1) activates the response and recovery aspects of all applicable local or interjurisdictional disaster emergency plans; and, (2) authorizes the furnishing of aid and assistance under the plans; and, WHEREAS,the regular meetings of the South Bend Common Council take place on the second and fourth Mondays of each month, therefore creating a period of fourteen(14) days between meetings; and, WHEREAS,it is the intent and desire of the Common Council to ensure that there is no gap in the principal executive officer's declaration of a"local disaster emergency;" and,