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Showing posts with label HUD. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HUD. Show all posts

Saturday, August 24, 2013

VA SAYS MORE MONEY AVAILABLE TO HELP HOMELESS VETERANS

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
HUD, VA Announce More Funds to Help Homeless Veterans
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

WASHINGTON, Aug. 21, 2013 - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs today announced the second round of HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing funding to local public housing agencies across the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

The $7.8 million in added funding will provide housing and clinical services for 1,120 currently homeless veterans.

In May of this year, the two agencies announced $60 million in HUD-VASH vouchers.

The supportive housing assistance announced today is provided through the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) Program which combines rental assistance from HUD with case management and clinical services provided by VA. Since 2008, a total of 58,140 vouchers have been awarded and 43,371 formerly homeless veterans are currently in homes of their own because of HUD-VASH.

"Our nation's veterans have sacrificed and given up so much for our freedom," said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. "These vouchers are helping America end veterans' homelessness one veteran at a time until we see not one veteran living on the street. I look forward to continue working with Secretary Shinseki and the Department of Veterans Affairs to target assistance to our homeless veterans."

"These HUD-VASH vouchers are a vital tool in our effort to provide these brave men and women with the earned care and benefits that help them live productive, meaningful lives," said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. "So long as a single veteran lives on our streets, we have work to do. But with the continued support of President Obama, Congress and our community partners, we will end homelessness among veterans."

HUD-VASH is a critical part of the Obama Administration's commitment to end Veteran and long-term chronic homelessness by 2015. "Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness," serves as a roadmap for how the federal government will work with state and local communities to confront the root causes of homelessness, especially among former servicemen and women. HUD's annual "point in time" estimate of the number of homeless persons and families for 2012 found that veteran homelessness fell by 7.2 percent, or 4,876 people, since January 2011, and by 17.2 percent since January 2009. On a single night in January 2012, 62,619 veterans were homeless.

The grants announced today are part of $75 million appropriated this year to support the housing needs of homeless veterans. Local public housing authorities provide rental assistance to homeless veterans while nearby VA medical centers offer supportive services and case management. This is the second round of the 2013 HUD-VASH funding. HUD expects to announce more HUD-VASH funding this year.

VA medical centers work closely with homeless veterans then refer them to public housing agencies for these vouchers, based upon a variety of factors, most importantly the duration of the homelessness and the need for longer-term, more-intensive support to obtain and maintain permanent housing. The HUD-VASH program includes both the rental assistance the voucher provides and the comprehensive case management that VA medical center staff provides.

Veterans participating in the HUD-VASH program rent privately owned housing and generally contribute no more than 30 percent of their income toward rent. VA offers eligible homeless veterans clinical and supportive services through its medical centers across the U.S., Guam and Puerto Rico.

Saturday, August 4, 2012

EPA, HUD, DOT AND, STATES PARTNER TO REACH GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT GOALS

FROM:  U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
EPA, HUD, and DOT Partner with States to Meet Growth, Development Goals

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced today they will partner with the Governors’ Institute on Community Design to provide enhanced technical guidance to governors seeking to tackle housing, transportation, environmental, and health challenges facing their states.

The partnership, a part of the Federal Partnership for Sustainable Communities, is designed for states seeking to spur economic growth and development while addressing these issues.

“The Governors’ Institute on Community Design helps states address local challenges in ways that are cheaper and more effective, making it an important part of the Obama Administration’s commitment to communities,” said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “The EPA has been proud to be a part of the program since it was created in 2005. We look forward to working with our colleagues at HUD and DOT as well as Smart Growth America to continue supporting the Institute's workshops, and help states achieve their economic, environmental, and public health goals."

“With this effort, our three agencies are providing the cutting-edge technical assistance states need to create healthier, more livable communities,” says HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. “Just as importantly, we are demonstrating once again that the key to more affordable housing, transportation and access to jobs is providing partnership at the federal level that supports innovation at the local level.”

DOT Secretary Ray LaHood adds, “By working with HUD and EPA over the last three years, we’ve made significant progress to help communities across the country become safer, healthier, and better connected.” “We’re excited to expand our collaboration by working directly with the Governors’ Institute to increase state transportation options.”

Established in 2005, the Governors’ Institute brings together leading practitioners and academics in government, design, development, and regional economics to help governors and their state executive teams make informed choices about growth and development in their states. At the request of a governor, the Governors’ Institute conducts a workshop that pairs the governor and his or her cabinet with planning experts to identify strategies that spur development and help communities achieve their economic, public health, and environmental goals. Governors also receive follow-up assistance on technical issues.

The Governors’ Institute is coordinated by Smart Growth America and is led by former Governor Parris N. Glendening of Maryland and former Governor Christine Todd Whitman of New Jersey. Tom Ridge, former governor of Pennsylvania; Chet Culver, former governor of Iowa; and James Lee Witt, former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, serve as advisors. In June, EPA awarded Smart Growth America a five-year cooperative agreement to administer the institute. This funding builds upon support provided previously by the National Endowment for the Arts, which brought to the fore issues of community design and art in public places.

The partnership, which celebrated its third anniversary in June, works to provide communities with faster, more streamlined access to federal programs and resources, and works closely with other federal agencies, states, and local governments to ensure that partnership programs use federal resources as efficiently as possible.