The grant provides funds for one third of the cost of operating the 211 Human Services Helpline. Tobacco Settlement Advisory Committee county funds expired in 2008 and until additional funding sources could be determined, gap funding was critical to maintain the 24/7 helpline.  The helpline provides multilingual assistance and information about community services, and access to crisis counseling and suicide prevention.
 211 also provides information in the event of an emergency or disaster affecting Santa Barbara County. Information on road closures, evacuation areas and emergency shelters helps ensure immediate and timely information and, at the same time, reduces the number of non-emergency calls to 911, police and fire services.