After learning of a funding shortfall that will impact seniors who receive home-delivered meals across the state and in Christian County, State Representative Myron Dossett is taking the Governor’s Office to task.
As previously reported, the Pennyrile Area Development District announced that their agency, along with Pennyrile Allied Community Services, recently suffered a funding cut of nearly $1.5 million that will impact the region’s Senior Home Delivered Meals program. Currently, over 750 seniors in the region receive some type of home-delivered meal, but with the cut in funding, the program may only be able to fully support less than 300 clients.
Governor Beshear has said that the Kentucky General Assembly approved using general funds to support the meal program after funding with the American Rescue Plan Act, but since then, supporting those programs have become more costly. Resulting in the cut to funding.
Representative Myron Dossett of Pembroke contends that’s not entirely the case, however, saying that the Governor’s administration failed to have the correct funding numbers in the first place.
Dossett says there is money available, it would simply need to be re-appropriated within the Cabinet to cover those food programs.
He goes on further to say that the Governor should be focused more on Kentucky and less on running for president.
PeADD and PACS staff are currently communicating with service recipients to explain the service reduction and to share information concerning other resources available to them.