STOCKTON — Financial help is on the way for Stockton residents who have fallen behind in their rent due to COVID-19. The Stockton City Council unanimously approved a resolution last week to accept and appropriate nearly $20 million in both state and federal funding awarded to the city in the past two months. The funds will provide emergency assistance to city residents who cannot pay rent or utilities because their household income has been reduced or they qualify for unemployment as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic. Stockton Economic Development Director Carrie Wright told the council during its Feb. 23 meeting that estimations show this influx of funding could help upward of 3,500 Stockton families.