Stimulus Dollars Target Homelessness

Photo of a infrastructure project that is part of the stimulus spending; it boldly states the name of the program and points to recovery.gov

Photo courtesy of Steve Rhodes via Flickr

Among the $787 billion in federal spending in the nation’s mammoth economic stimulus bill is $1.5 billion for homelessness prevention – a measure that is being hailed homeless advocates as a “landmark” provision.  

The homelessness prevention money was one of several commitments in recent weeks by the Obama administration and Congress to addressing both short-term issues triggered by the current economic crisis and longer-term issues that have been the target of efforts for years.  

The $1.5 billion in new money under the stimulus bill – formally known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act – is for a “homelessness prevention fund” that “will provide financial assistance and services to prevent individuals and families from becoming homeless and help those who are experiencing homelessness to be quickly re-housed and stabilized,” according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. One particular target group for the funding is low-income renters who live in buildings that are in foreclosure, the agency said.  

The funds can be used for a range of purposes, according to HUD, including rental assistance, credit counseling, security or utility deposits and case management.  

The National Alliance to End Homelessness praised the inclusion of the homelessness prevention: funds in the stimulus bill. NAEH President Nan Roman said the money could be used for a variety of purposes; to hire people to negotiate with landlords or serve as housing locators; to establish housing data systems to help case managers keep people who have homes from losing them; or to get homeless people quickly into housing.  

Unlike much of the spending in the stimulus bill, the homelessness prevention money is not focused on capital investments, Roman said.  

The Obama administration has said the main goal of the stimulus bill is job creation, Roman said, and the homelessness prevention money helps serve that end. Another goal, she noted is to “alleviate suffering” of people who already have been hurt by the financial crisis.  

Some critics of the stimulus package have questioned certain parts as not helping job creation – singling out some expenditures smaller than the one for homelessness prevention. But the homelessness prevention measure has not attracted noticeable controversy.  

It isn’t clear if the money is a one-time boon or the first part of a major longer-term commitment to homelessness prevention, Roman said. But even if it isn’t repeated, it gives communities a chance “to build up capacity,” she said.  

In addition to the stimulus money, in late February the Department of Housing and Urban Development announced nearly $1.6 billion in grant awards for homeless programs that will come from existing funds. 

The bulk of the money, about $1.4 billion, is for what HUD calls “continuum of care” grants that provide permanent and transitional housing to homeless people.  

Such grants also cover services such as job training, health care, mental health counseling, substance abuse counseling and child care, HUD officials have explained.  

Another $160 million is for emergency shelter grants, which provide money for local shelters, as well as related social service and homelessness prevention programs.  

There is a direct connection between the grants and the $1.5 billion from the stimulus bill, HUD officials said. As part of the grant process, the agency is awarding $24 million to create pilot programs in 23 communities for the rapid re-housing of families with children.  

HUD will draw on the “best practices” developed under those pilot programs when it spends the $1.5 billion in stimulus money, HUD spokesman Brian Sullivan said in a recent interview.  

Among the 23 communities receiving money are the District ($1,866,274) and Montgomery County ($541,738).  

Also last month, the Obama administration issued the outlines of its FY 2010 budget request.  

A key feature of the request is the $1 billion it provides for the National Housing Trust Fund, which would support financing of the development, rehabilitation and preservation of affordable housing for people with very low incomes. The budget also requests funding increases in two major rental assistance programs.  

The details of the request are scheduled to be issued in April.  

Meanwhile, Congress also moved toward approval of the so-called “omnibus” FY 2009 spending bill, covering HUD and most other government agencies. The bill provides increases for numerous programs affecting the poor and homeless, though many rose by only a few percentage points.  

Among the larger increases were those for Section 8 project-based vouchers for affordable housing, up $668 million in FY 2008 to $7.1 billion, and Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness, whose funding rose $6.4 million to $59.7 million.  

FY 2009 began October 1, 2008, but Congress agreed on the spending figures for only part of the government. For the rest of the government, lawmakers passed an interim spending bill that expires March 6. 


Issues |Economy

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