Johnson County’s Direct Assistance Program provides one-time, financial assistance to individuals who have suffered hardship due to COVID-19. Eligible residents who are low- to moderate-income with documented hardship due to COVID-19 are invited to apply for a $1,400 emergency relief payment. Only Johnson County residents are eligible for the Direct Assistance Program.

Johnson County will host a second Direct Assistance Program application clinic from noon to 6 p.m. on Friday, May 13, 2022. The clinic will take place in Room 203 B/C in the Johnson County Health and Human Services Building, 855 S. Dubuque Street, Iowa City.

For those who plan to attend the clinic, or seek application assistance through a community partner, make sure you have the following:

• Appropriate documentation – a list of accepted documentation is available at https://www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov/direct-assistance-program. Click on “Accepted Documentation” under “Program Information.”  
• Sign-in and password information for email addresses and online accounts that you may need to access in order to provide documentation, for example: Social Security benefits or income tax filings. Individuals will not be asked to share this information with those assisting in the application process, but this information is necessary to complete the online application.
• Grant portal sign-in and password information – for individuals who have already started an application, this information is necessary to complete the application. Individuals will not be asked to share this information with those assisting in the application process.

Appointments for the application clinic are encouraged and can be made by visiting https://calendly.com/direct-assistance-program/direct-assistance-program-application-clinic. Individuals who need assistance signing up for an appointment, or who need specific accommodations, including language interpretation, can call the Direct Assistance Program clinic hotline at 319-688-5988. The hotline, which is available in English and Spanish, will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday and all day on Friday, May 13. Applications will be accepted through Monday, May 23, 2022. Applying for the program does not guarantee that an individual will receive assistance.

Applications are only available through the Johnson County website. Assistance is available from Direct Assistance Program community partners, including Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa, Coralville Community Food Pantry, Coralville Public Library, Iowa City Public Library, IC Compassion, North Liberty Community Pantry and North Liberty Community Library.

There is no fee to apply for the Direct Assistance Program or to receive application assistance.

More information is available on the Direct Assistance Program website in English at https://www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov/direct-assistance-program or in Spanish at https://johnsoncountyiowa.gov/programa-de-asistencia-directa. On the website, applicants can find the application and the list of accepted documentation in English, Spanish, French, Swahili, and Arabic as well as information about application assistance. In the Frequently Asked Questions section, applicants can click on "How can I get help completing an application?" to learn more about opportunities for assistance from Johnson County as well as several community organizations who are available to assist with the application process. 

More information about ARPA and how it impacts Johnson County is available at https://www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov/arpa.