Evanston residents who are employed by the federal government and are not receiving their paychecks may qualify for the City’s Emergency Assistance program.
Emergency Assistance, administered by the City’s Health & Human Services Department, provides residents with financial assistance for expenses related to housing, utilities and food.
To qualify for the program, federal employees must reside in Evanston and provide proof that they are furloughed. Documentation may include a pay stub or a letter from their employer.
Community members can apply for Emergency Assistance in-person at the City’s General Assistance Office in Room 1600 of the Civic Center.
The City will also serve as an ombudsman to connect furloughed residents with other resources that may be available to them. Residents may call or text 847-448-4311 for assistance.
Additional food resources are available to community members at soup kitchens and food pantries sponsored by Interfaith Action of Evanston and its partners.
City oficials say they’re not sure how many federal workers live in Evanston or how many of them are furloughed.
The Census Bureau’s American Community Survey says 678 of the 36,458 Evanston residents in the civilian labor force are employed in public administration, but that would include people working for state and local governments as well as federal employees.
Update 1/16/19: Governing magazine has estimated that 40,855 federal employees are furloughed in Illinois. If they were evenly distributed across the state, that would suggest that Evanston, with about 0.6 percent of the state’s population, might be home to 240 furloughed federal workers.
Forget about the municipal employees?
So our elected president throws a tantrum and shuts down the federal government. Federal employees get forced to take time off unless their emergency personnel, and they work for free. They will eventually get paid back for all the time they were off and for all the time they worked without pay.
What about the city employees who are forced to take furlough days because our lovely city council overspent last year? We have money and ways to help out federal employees who live in town, pay for groceries and bills.
Who’s gonna help me pay for my groceries and my bills? Absolute BS, this city is quick to help others but forgets about their own employees/residents.