HUD Awards $5.6 Billion In Annual Grants For Affordable Housing, Community Development And Homeless Assistance

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today announced $5.6 billion in funding will go to 1,200 communities through more than 2,400 grants to states, urban counties, insular areas, Washington, DC; Puerto Rico and local organizations across the country. These annual formula grants provide critical funding for a wide range of activities including affordable housing, community development and homeless assistance.

“Viable communities must promote integrated approaches to develop decent housing, suitable living environments and expand economic opportunities to the most vulnerable,” said HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge. “These funds allow communities to address their unique needs by prioritizing what matters most to their residents and letting them own their investments in community development through these important federal resources.”

“This funding allows communities to address their most pressing local needs, providing flexible resources to build homes, support renters and homeowners, provide life-saving assistance to people experiencing homelessness, and improve public facilities, community resilience, and local economies,” said Marion McFadden, principal deputy assistant secretary for community planning and development. “HUD’s annual formula block grants allow states and localities to invest in the success of neighborhoods and allow people of modest means to thrive.”

The grants announced today are provided through the following HUD programs:

• $3.3 billion to 1239 states and localities to build stronger communities— The Community Development Block Grants provides annual grants on a formula basis to states, cities, counties, and insular areas to develop stronger, more resilient communities by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment, and by expanding economic opportunities, principally for low- and moderate-income people. In 2022 the program helped over 60,000 families through housing activities, 46,000 individuals through job creation or retention, 83,500 people experiencing homelessness through improvements to homelessness facilities, over 5.3 million people through public services, and over 39 million people through public improvements.
• $1.5 billion to 664 participating jurisdictions to produce affordable housing — The HOME Investment Partnerships Program is the primary federal tool of states and local governments to produce affordable rental and owner-occupied housing for low-income families. HOME funds a wide range of activities including building, buying and/or rehabilitating affordable housing for rent or homeownership or providing direct rental assistance to low-income people. HOME projects leverage non-federal funds including, in many cases, tax credits for affordable rental housing. In 2022 the program helped create over 15,000 units of housing and nearly 17,000 households were assisted with tenant based rental assistance through the HOME program.
• $499 million to 130 qualifying cities and eligible states to connect people with HIV/AIDS to housing and support — The Housing Opportunities for Persons With HIV/AIDS (HOPWA) program provides stable and permanent housing assistance and supportive services to low-income people living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Over 100,000 households receive HOPWA housing assistance and/or supportive services annually.
• $290 million to 359 states and localities to address homelessness — Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) provides funds for homeless shelters, assists in the operation of local shelters and funds related social service and homeless prevention programs. Recipients enable people to quickly regain stability in permanent housing after experiencing a housing crisis and/or homelessness. ESG funds may be used for street outreach, emergency shelter, homelessness prevention, and rapid re-housing assistance. Annually, ESG connects over 350,000 people to emergency shelter as they transition to permanent housing
• $30 million to 23 states and the District of Columbia to support recovery from substance use disorder— The Recovery Housing Program allows states and the District of Columbia to provide stable, transitional housing for individuals in recovery from a substance-use disorder.

Combined the programs will provide critically needed funding to thousands of local programs in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa and Northern Mariana Islands.

This post first appeared on Forbes.com. To see the original, click here.