LISTEN: Since the 1960s, Community Action Agencies have done much of the work on the ground in the war on poverty. But today, most of the federal money that normally reaches the state’s nonprofits is tied up in Congress. Some are looking to other funding sources. GPB's Sofi Gratas gives us a closer look.
The federal government shutdown which officially started on Oct. 1 has left hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding for programs that help people afford basic needs in the lurch.
That problem’s trickled down to the little-known nonprofits called Community Action Agencies that provide often crucial services to thousands of struggling families. These agencies do everything from get meals to seniors, run early child care programs and even help people cut their utility bills in Georgia’s cities and small towns.
On Oct. 18, 2025, near Macon’s downtown, volunteers for one of these organizations crowded around pallets of diapers in bright yellow vests. A line of cars, some of which arrived at the crack of dawn, waited to meet them.
Every car that pulls up gets 100 diapers and some wipes. The supplies are passed through open car windows.
This diaper drive is a one-day event but it’s part of a larger, federally funded program called the Diaper Distribution Demonstration and Research Pilot run out of Georgia’s community action agencies, which are essentially one-stop shops for basic needs.
Consuela Thompson, who works with the Georgia Community Action Association, said this year alone they’ve given out over 400,000 diapers across the state. They held their first diaper drive earlier this year.
“One of my agencies over in Milledgeville, over in that area, she said people had driven over an hour to get to those diapers,” Thompson said. “And that's definitely reflective of the need.”
The grant also funds monthly case management for eligible families with diaper-wearing children. During the Saturday diaper drive, it took two hours for the Macon Economic Opportunity Council to run out of the 40,000 diapers it had in stock for the event.
The $1.2 million dollar grant from the Health and Human Services Administration has not only allowed community action agencies to host drives like this, but to also enroll families in a whole host of other services, Thompson said. Passing out diapers can act as an entryway to what Thompson and others call wraparound services, which include early childhood education at the Head Start center.
“And all they came for was the diapers,” Thompson said. “And we're now addressing all these other situations that are happening within the household.”
Community Action Agencies have their roots in legislation from the 1960s which sought to create a network of local anti-poverty initiatives funded by the federal government.
Thompson said meeting people's basic needs has never felt controversial. But now she’s worried money for the diaper program won’t be included in next year’s federal budget — already, President Donald Trump axed funding in his proposed budget for a program under the community action agency umbrella that helps people pay their power bills, called the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP.
Right now, the federal government shutdown poses the most immediate threat to that kind of help. There will likely be delays in accessing LIHEAP funds as well as money from Community Services Block Grants.
Tammy Sosebee, based in Warner Robins, said the community action agencies she runs can last about two months under the shutdown before she has to start laying off staff at neighborhood service centers that provide assistance and referrals for basic needs.
“They know their community, they know where the resources are, they know how to help people,” Sosebee said. “Where will these people go?”
Sosebee is the executive director of the Middle Georgia Community Action Agency and the Heart of Georgia Community Action Council which collectively, serve 22 counties. Those Community Services Block Grants, or CSBGs, fund work at the neighborhood service centers at risk of closing.
“I had a lady show up this week to one of my offices," Sosebee said. "She thought she was going to be evicted and we were able to help her. But it happens on a daily basis, different situations.”
As the shutdown continues, she worries most about the energy assistance program and those neighborhood centers, but also about funding from the Department of Aging that pays for their senior meal programs.
The Georgia Community Action Association, that statewide representative for the organizations that include the ones Sosebee oversees, has been vocal about what it needs to keep these programs running: a federal budget that renews or builds on past investments.
If that money goes away, Sosebee said “it would be nice” if some of the state government’s $14.6 billion surplus could be allocated to bolster services at risk. Her group already partners with local county and city governments on some of their programs, borrowing local spaces or vehicles to support outreach.
“The more we can diversify, the better off we'll be,” Sosebee said.
Gov. Brian Kemp has so far rejected asks for surplus money to support a pause in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
The National Community Action Foundation warned Thursday that the pause on SNAP benefits will put extra pressure on community action agencies, and that by Thanksgiving, 34% of agencies across the country will have to temporarily close services or furlough staff.
Head Start is a free early childhood education program for kids under 5 years old. Last fiscal year, 19,647 children in Georgia participated in it across the state.
Sosbee said her Head Start programs in Middle Georgia have funds through January.
Meanwhile, in Waycross in Southeast Georgia, another Head Start program will run out of money this week.
Philanthropy is keeping three Head Start agencies on a different grant cycle in metro Atlanta open until mid December. Lauren Koontz from the YMCA of Metro Atlanta calls the $8 million bridge loan from the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta a “radical” move to support a program that’s historically had bipartisan support.
“But let's be very clear: The philanthropic community should not be supplanting federal dollars,” Koontz said.
The bridge loan only begins to cover expenses for Head Start compared to federal funding. Koontz said she hopes it gives lawmakers enough of a buffer to “get back at the table and figure this shutdown out.”
“This is just a temporary reprieve,” Koontz said.
Much like the packages of diapers getting these Middle Georgia families through one more week.
Consuela Thompson in Macon likes the idea of the nonprofit diversifying its funding. She’s hopeful that events like the diaper drive in Macon can bring more attention to Community Action Agencies and prove they are wanted.
“Foundations are stepping up, local businesses are stepping up,” she said, watching as the line of cars moved slowly down the road. “Even the clients themselves are saying, 'What do I need to do to help?'”
For now, their funding will stay tied up in Congress until lawmakers can reach a deal to release it.
GPB’s Sarah Kallis contributed to the reporting in this story.
