SARASOTA, Fla. — Six months after Sarasota County commissioners voted to end funding for the 211 helpline service, the issue has returned to the commission's meeting agenda for possible reconsideration.
The 211 number has been used by the community for more than 40 years to get referral services to local non-profits in times of crisis.
Leaders with United Way Suncoast, the organization that runs the initiative, said they are glad commissioners are reconsidering their decision on the helpline. They described 2-1-1 as a vital resource to the community and hope for a positive outcome at Tuesday's meeting.
"211 is in an information and referral phone calling system where anybody in the community who is struggling with food resources, education resources, mental health issues or anything that they're struggling with, they can call that number," Bronwyn Beightol, the chief impact officer of United Way Suncoast, said.
The free service connects families to an expert on the other end who listens to their issues and then links them to helpful resources.
"Having that helpline and not having to navigate the social services network in order to find the resources that we need is critical to keeping us in our jobs, keeping our workforce thriving, and keeping our children in school," Beightol added.
According to United Way Suncoast, a tri-county database including Manatee and Desoto counties has provided access to around 2,000 services. Sarasota County government's annual cost share for that to be available to residents comes to around $109,000.
However, that partnership was interrupted in September when commissioners removed the service from its list of core funding programs.
"45% of our community members are struggling to make ends meet. They're working paycheck to paycheck. Many of us are finding ourselves in a situation that we've never been in before. Where are they going to go? Who are they going to be able to call, and for something that can usually be solved fairly quickly? Ultimately that impacts our children as well," Beightol explained.
Last year alone, there were more than 11,000 calls, texts, chats and emails to 2-1-1- with around 18,000 referrals.
Without a U-turn by the county commissioners, the lines have to go dead on March 31. After that date, all calls would be diverted to the county-run 3-1-1 line which is only staffed during normal business hours and does not provide 24/7 response like 2-1-1.
"Our only recourse at this time is for calls to go to 3-1-1 which is the county information line which is really specific to services at Sarasota County Government. The infrastructure and the sophistication of being able to answer the level of calls that come into 2-1-1 are just simply not there. That's nobody's fault, that's just not what it was set up for," she added.
A spokesperson for Sarasota County sent this statement to 10 Tampa Bay on the matter.
"Sarasota County encourages our community members to use our 311 app or call 311 for assistance with county services. This was true before the discontinuation of 211 services and remains the case afterward. It is essential to understand that 311 is dedicated to Sarasota County services and not to be utilized as a referral agency."
"Just getting it back on the agenda is a wonderful thing that's good conversation, so the community has stepped up and let our commissioners know just how important the service is to them," Beightol said.
The commission meeting begins at 9 a.m. Tuesday.