The Emergency Public Jobs program provides the help needed to clean up flood and storm-damaged sites around Iowa. The U.S. Department of Labor July 24th 2008 awarded funds to the state of Iowa for the project which is designed to put unemployed persons to work doing flood and storm related clean-up and repair at non-profit and public worksites. Iowa Comprehensive Human Services is the agency in Central Iowa that administers the program for Polk County as well as the surrounding counties of Boone, Dallas, Jasper, Marion, Madison, Story and Warren.

What central Iowa worksites are eligible for the program?

Worksites may be established where authorized clean-up, restoration and humanitarian service activities are performed related to the floods and storms. This help is free to these sites as well as some tools to aide in the recovery work. State, county and city parks, bike trails and shelters are among the types of sites currently under restoration.

Clean-up and repair of damage caused by the storms or flooding of 2008, such as removing debris from rivers and ditches, moving riprap rock next to the rivers, painting picnic tables and shelters, moving dirt and sandbags, repairing hiking and biking trails are examples of eligible work.

Who is eligible to work under the program?

Individual’s eligible to participate in this program fall into three categories:

1. Workers who have been temporarily or permanently dislocated as a result of the disaster;

2. Dislocated workers who are unemployed as defined by the Workforce Investment Act (recently laid-off due to a business closing);

or

3. Individuals who are longterm unemployed (not fulltime employed for 15 out of the last 26 weeks.)

What can I do to help?

If you or someone you know qualifies as an eligible worker under the program or if you know of a qualified site that has experienced flood or storm-related damage, please contact Iowa Comprehensive Human Services toll-free at 1-800-413-3922 for a personal interview.

The Emergency Public Jobs program ends June 30, 2010.