California: Trans Latina Group Loses Funding

San Francisco's Department of Public Health recently awarded an HIV prevention and services grant to Instituto Familiar de la Raza, or the Latina Family Institute, to target transgender Latinas. The El/La Transgender Latina HIV Prevention Program (El/La) had previously held the city contract, but a change of its fiscal agent prompted a required competitive bidding process.

With slightly over $150,000 of its $160,000 budget coming from the city, El/La had to lay off staff. However, it has enough reserve funds to stay open until the end of December, and it is looking for additional money to restore staff positions, said Marcia Ochoa, director of programs and evaluation. El/La has served transgender Latinas in the Mission District since 2006, and it sees about 125-150 Latinas a year. Many of El/La's clients speak Spanish only and are seeking asylum in the United States from transphobic violence in their home countries, said Ochoa.

Since El/La did not have the infrastructure to manage contracts or grants, San Francisco-based Mobilization Against AIDS International worked as its fiscal agent. MAAI notified the health department that it could no longer act as fiscal agent; meanwhile El/La was developing a fiscal agency agreement with the Native American AIDS Project.

"When a fiscal agent can no longer hold a contract with the department… we must solicit those services," said Tracey Packer, deputy director of the health department's HIV prevention section. An independent external review panel recommended the Latina Family Institute be funded to provide services based on the city's established scoring system, Packer said. The move is "not at all" a judgment of El/La, she emphasized.

The Latino Family Institute has a transition plan in place, and it will hold special events and have a focus group to help determine client needs, said Armando Hernandez, coordinator for the institute's Latino AIDS services program. While El/La's situation is regrettable, Hernandez said, "We really want to stay focused on clients and work with El/La" to ensure Latinas receive services.

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