Press Release
Posted:
Washington – Today, Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-04) announced he secured $275,000 in community project funding for Meals on Wheels Yolo County to add a second kitchen to its facilities to expand its meal production for seniors.
“It’s critical for seniors in our community to have access to nutritious meals every day. That’s why I’m proud to have secured $275,000 in federal funds to double our local Meals on Wheels Yolo facility’s daily meal production. Thank you to local Yolo County officials for identifying the need for these funds,” said Rep. Thompson.
“The Meals on Wheels Yolo County team was grateful and honored to receive the news recently from Rep. Thompson's local office of our project's inclusion in the appropriations bill. The opportunity to expand Meals on Wheels-Sutter Health Senior Nutrition Center in Winters to include a second active cooking area not only provides the potential to nourish more of the thousands of Yolo County seniors still awaiting our nutrition assistance, but also to do so more cost-effectively. Co-locating two kitchens within one space will extend our budget over the long-term. A big thank you to the Congressman and his staff for seeing the wisdom in this approach, and being willing to support it!" said Joy Cohan, Executive Director of Meals on Wheels Yolo County.
Funding will go towards the construction of a second kitchen at the Meals on Wheels Yolo County facility to double meal production to feed local seniors.
Last year, Meals on Wheels Yolo established the Meals on Wheels-Sutter Health Senior Nutrition Center in Winters. This 5,300 square foot facility includes space for a second active kitchen area. With this funding, Meals on Wheels Yolo will build a second kitchen in order to cost-effectively double the number of meals produced daily for a total of 2,200 meals produced per day. Expanding the program will ensure more seniors are nourished countywide, improve rural communities’ access to meals, and increase the availability of medically-tailored meals.
Rep. Thompson requested funding for the project through Congress’ Community Project Funding (CPF) process. His request was included in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, which passed out of committee last week. The bill is expected to pass both chambers of Congress and be signed into law later this year.
To date, Thompson has secured a total of $2,125,000 in funding for three CPF requests submitted on behalf of Yolo County and a total of $15,304,205 for projects across California’s Fourth District for 2025.
About Community Project Funding (CPF)
Each year, Members of Congress may direct federal funding to a select number of Community Projects through the appropriations process. Under this process, each House member is permitted to submit 15 project requests to the Appropriations Committee on behalf of their Congressional District so long as the projects meet criteria set forth by the Committee. There are no guarantees that Community Projects will all be funded, and the projects are competitively evaluated by the Committee on Appropriations.
Project selection and submissions is the first stage of the process for Community Project Funding. The projects are subject to a strict transparency and accountability process before they may be selected for inclusion in the relevant appropriations legislation for the upcoming year.