Lake County Health & Community Services Committee Meeting - December 2, 2025

The Lake County Health and Community Services Committee convened on December 2, 2025, at 8:35 AM to review emergency appropriations, authorize workforce development contracts, and discuss critical updates to federal housing funding. The meeting featured discussions on expanding manufacturing training, parent mentoring models, and integrating artificial intelligence into workforce services. A significant portion of the meeting was devoted to a Director's report regarding abrupt changes in HUD Community Continuum of Care (COC) funding, which shifted focus from permanent supportive housing to transitional models, raising concerns about displacement for 172 households.

Consent Calendar

• Approval of Minutes: Approved the October 21, 2025, joint budget hearing minutes and health and community services committee minutes via unanimous motion.
• Emergency Appropriations: unanimously approved three emergency resolutions to accept additional funding from the Illinois Department of Public Health and Department of Children and Family Services, specifically acknowledging that state grant cycles (July 1 to June 30) do not align with the county's fiscal year.
  • Resolution 8.3: $6,148 for Public Health Emergency Preparedness Grant.
  • Resolution 8.4: $61,841 for Cities Readiness Initiative Grant.
  • Resolution 8.5: $2,951 for Intensive Placement Stabilization Grant.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Member Main's Observation: Expressed that the county's Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) board is superior to any other county in Illinois and voiced strong support for the WICF board's efforts.
• Member Kasmin's Position: Stated support for the United Way partnership, emphasizing that the collaborative approach helps avoid inequity among less well-funded school districts and addresses the shortage of paraprofessionals.
• Member Maine's Inquiry: Raised concerns regarding the lack of transparency in ethics processes due to significant crossover between the Workforce Development Board, United Way Board, and county employees, suggesting that while recusal processes exist, they are not visible to the public and could be perceived as a potential red flag.
• Vice Chair Cunningham's Stance: Expressed deep concern and urgency regarding the HUD funding changes, urging the board to actively support the housing community by writing letters to HUD and finding local solutions to prevent displacement.

Discussion Items

• Workforce Development Contracts:
  • Symbol Training Institute: Approved a $340,000 contract for manufacturing sector training (CNC and Industrial Maintenance). Director Sereno explained the program aims for ~80% placement rates, though some participants drop out due to personal commitments rather than lack of opportunity.
  • United Way of Lake County: Approved a $100,000 contract to expand a parent mentoring model. The program targets 1,100 students, has shown a 70% increase in improved student performance, and serves as a pipeline for parents to become paraprofessionals. The project is an award-winning initiative recognized by the Illinois Workforce Investment Board. Chair Hart inquired about the distinction between parent mentors and certified paraprofessionals, which are state-certified.
  • Deloitte Consulting: Approved a $100,000 contract to improve workforce services through an AI lens. The initiative will train staff, job seekers, and employers on the practical and ethical use of AI. Member Kasman emphasized the importance of integrating ethical use of AI into the curriculum alongside practical skills.
• Community Development & Housing Updates:
  • CDBG Amendment: Approved the second amendment to the 2025 Annual Action Plan to reallocate $72,000 of HOME program income to the Down Payment Assistance program, thereby freeing up CDBG funds to honor expired grants to the Youth Conservation Corps of Waukegan. Member Kasmin recused themselves from this specific vote due to housing-related conflicts of interest.
  • HUD COC Funding Crisis: Director Sereno and CoC Coordinator Maylin Gembra reported that HUD has reduced the protected funding (Tier 1) for permanent supportive housing from 90% to 30%. Additionally, the new funding requires 70% of resources to be allocated to transitional (time-limited) housing with heavy service requirements, rather than the previous permanent support model.
    • Impact: The shift threatens 172 households currently in permanent rental assistance. The application deadline is January 15, 2025, creating significant uncertainty for contracts ending in early 2026.
    • Member Kasman's Position: Described the policy shift as "insane, unnecessarily disruptive, chaotic, cruel, and wrong," noting the extraordinary disability levels of the population served and the high cost of homelessness versus the savings of permanent housing.
    • Member Maine's Position: Expressed frustration with the schools' failure to provide remedial math, arguing that this skill gap blocks many adults from accessing these new career pathways and that industry-specific math (articulated education) has mixed results.
    • Recidivism Coalition: Discussed the integration of the Coalition to Reduce Recidivism, which refers individuals to the job center for training; referrals are made to programs like Symbol Training Institute based on individual skill sets and background.

Key Outcomes

• Voters: The committee unanimously passed all motions (8.1 through 8.10) except for the recusal of Member Kasmin on item 8.10.
• Directives:
  • The committee is urged by the Chair and Vice Chair to engage in advocacy to mitigate the impact of federal housing policy changes.
  • Staff are to complete data sets regarding employment outcomes for the Climate Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) program.
  • A landscape study for college and career pathways is scheduled to initiate in January 2026 with a report due in September 2026.
• Referrals: Two lawsuits have been filed regarding the HUD funding changes, one filed the previous day.
• Next Steps: The committee will reconvene on January 6, 2026.