Department: Public Health Services
Department Head/Elected Official: Leah Barton ─ Interim Executive Director
Regular or Supplemental RCA: Regular RCA
Type of Request: Grant
Project ID (if applicable): N/A
Vendor/Entity Legal Name (if applicable): Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
MWDBE Contracted Goal (if applicable): N/A
MWDBE Current Participation (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% MWDBE Participation Goal: N/A - Goal not applicable to request
Request Summary (Agenda Caption):
title
Request by Public Health Services for approval to submit an application to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for grant funds up to $200,000 annually, with no required match, for the FY 25 Environmental Health Specialists Network (EHS-Net) Program.
end
Background and Discussion:
The Environmental Health Specialists Network (EHS-Net) grant, administered through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), supports state and local health departments in conducting practice-based research to improve retail food safety, targeting key risk factors that lead to foodborne illnesses. As a current EHS-Net partner, Harris County Public Health seeks the court’s permission to apply for continued funding to advance our mission of protecting public health in Harris County and beyond. Our long-term goal is to foster a proactive, collaborative environment where all county stakeholders engage in preventing foodborne illnesses. The grant will enable HCPH to enhance food safety culture at the retail level while refining protocols to better identify, respond to, and mitigate foodborne illness outbreaks. In addition to supporting research, the grant promotes collaboration between environmental health, epidemiology, and laboratory teams to improve data collection, outbreak reporting, and the dissemination of findings through the CDC’s National Environmental Assessment Reporting System (NEARS). This continued partnership aligns with our commitment to ensuring safe food practices and protecting public health in our communities.
Expected Impact:
Leveraging these resources to advance retail food safety measures and investigate foodborne illness risk factors will enhance public health results by decreasing the frequency of foodborne outbreaks, refining response protocols, and fortifying collaboration among environmental health, epidemiology, and laboratory teams. The research findings will also guide comprehensive public health strategies and policies, resulting in sustained enhancements in food safety and the protection of public health across various populations.
Alternative Options:
The court could choose to reject this request to apply for the grant, which would result in a setback for HCPH's efforts to improve food safety in retail establishments, directly impacting residents who rely on safe food practices. Without the continued funding and resources from the EHS-Net grant, HCPH may struggle to effectively conduct foodborne illness investigations, implement preventive measures, and collaborate with local businesses and stakeholders. This could limit our ability to identify and address key risk factors in food establishments, potentially increasing the risk of foodborne outbreaks and compromising public health.
Alignment with Goal(s):
_ Justice and Safety
_ Economic Opportunity
_ Housing
X Public Health
_ Transportation
_ Flooding
_ Environment
_ Governance and Customer Service
Prior Court Action (if any):
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Precinct(s): Countywide
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Fiscal and Personnel Summary |
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Public Health Services |
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Current Fiscal Year Cost |
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Total Current Budget |
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Additional Budget Request (Requires Fiscal Review Request Form) |
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$60,000 |
$140,000 |
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Total Additional Budget Request |
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Total Funding Request |
$60,000 |
$140,000 |
$200,000 |
$200,000 |
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Personnel(Fill out section only if requesting new PCNs) |
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Current Position Count for Service |
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Additional Positions Request |
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Total Personnel |
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Anticipated Court Date: November 12, 2024
Anticipated Implementation Date (if different from Court date): December 02, 2024
Emergency/Disaster Recovery Note: Not an emergency, disaster, or COVID-19 related item
Contact(s) name, title, department: Brandon Maddox, Director, Office of Planning and Innovation, Public Health Services
Attachments (if applicable): Grant NOFO, Grant Opportunity Synopsis