In the wake of the state’s decision to strip the Social Development Commission of its community action status, the agency’s leaders say they plan to fight the decision and continue to advocate for anti-poverty services in Milwaukee County.
The Wisconsin Department of Children and Families determined last week that as of July 3, SDC will no longer be Milwaukee County’s community action agency and thus will not be eligible for the Community Services Block Grant that is distributed to community action agencies.
The department’s secretary wrote in the decision letter that in the year since SDC abruptly shut down in April 2024 and the five months since the agency reopened in a limited capacity, SDC failed to make a concrete plan to restart services.
SDC plans to request a review with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and may also file a lawsuit against the department, according to William Sulton, SDC’s attorney.
The block grant funding has historically only made up a small portion of SDC’s budget, Sulton said – the department originally planned to allocate $2.1 million for SDC in fiscal year 2025. However, the agency is also not receiving other state, city and county funding that it used to get to support a variety of anti-poverty programs.
“What’s happening is the city and county are using this designation as an excuse for why they will not fund SDC at even higher levels,” Sulton said.
Response from city and county leaders
Jeff Fleming, a spokesperson for Mayor Cavalier Johnson, said the mayor is focused on restoring services provided by community action agencies to Milwaukee residents in need.
“He had hopes that SDC would be able to rebound, but he is supportive of the appropriate steps – including termination of SDC’s status – if that’s what’s needed to provide effective service to our residents,” Fleming said.
Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley is aware of the department’s decision and remains ready to work with the Department of Children and Families and local partners to identify another entity or entities to be eligible for the federal funding, according to a spokesperson.
“SDC, like everyone else, is entitled to due process and it must have its day of due process, including the state-legislated requirement that the Common Council and the County Board of Supervisors must consent under state law to a de-designation of SDC,” said Jorge Franco, SDC’s interim CEO and chair of the board.
Franco is referring to Wisconsin Statute 49.265, which states the approval of a community action agency can be rescinded only with good cause and if the decision to rescind is made by “both the legislative body of the county, city, village or town that granted the approval and the secretary.”
It is unclear which legislative body this statute applies to, but the Milwaukee County Office of Corporation Counsel has stated it has found no records of the Board of Supervisors taking action on SDC’s status as a community action agency.
Restarting services in Milwaukee County
Sulton believes the state and county have no plans to offer anti-poverty services in Milwaukee County or use the block grant funding planned for SDC.
“SDC is not preventing them from creating another community action agency,” he said.
He said that the state could create an expedited process to establish another community action agency in Milwaukee County or give the money directly to the county or city, but it hasn’t started this work and there are no other established agencies to fill in the gaps.
“I think the ultimate result of all of this is going to be that the money’s gonna be returned to the federal government,” Sulton said.
The federal CSBG Act does not allow the funding to be dispersed to another community action agency or other agency without first following a formal process for termination or voluntary de-designation, according to Gina Paige, the communications director for the department.
Additionally, she said the department has started to reach out to existing community action agencies in Wisconsin, but did not specify which agencies.
SDC will continue to seek reimbursements from DCF for work done by employees in 2024, Sulton said, which the department previously rejected.
The future of anti-poverty work
Rep. Gwen Moore, who represents Wisconsin’s 4th District in the U.S. House of Representatives and is a former employee of SDC, said that residents need access to assistance with child care, housing, food and other needs amid rising costs.
“Yet, for nearly a year, my constituents have lost access to federally funded services that would help them in these challenging times,” Moore said.
Moore said she will fight the Trump Administration’s proposal to eliminate the Community Service Block Grant program altogether for fiscal year 2026 because it’s “too important.”
“At the end of the day, the ball remains in SDC’s court and what they do next will have a great role in determining if/when CSBG services resume in our area,” she said.
Edgar Mendez contributed to this report.
Meredith Melland is the neighborhoods reporter for the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service and a corps member of Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. Report for America plays no role in editorial decisions in the NNS newsroom.
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