HUD & VA AWARD RENTAL ASSISTANCE TO 610 MORE HOMELESS VETERANS IN ALASKA, IDAHO, OREGON & WASHINGTON
With today's awards, HUD Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing Program will assist 2,893 Northwest vets

SEATTLE - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki announced today that will provide HUD rental vouchers and VA case management to 610 more homeless veterans - 50 in Alaska, 50 in Idaho, 185 in Oregon and 325 in Washington state (see award chart below).

The 610 rental assistance vouchers awarded today are over and above the 2,283 Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing Program (HUD-VASH) vouchers awarded since 2008 to housing authorities across the Northwest to provide affordable housing to homeless veterans. The 2012 appropriations bill provides $3,770,409 in funds to support these additional vouchers. Awards today went to housing authorities serving Alaska, Anchorage, Bend, Boise, Clackamas County, Coeur d'Alene, Eugene, Port Angeles, Portland, Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma, Yakima and Clackamas, Jackson, King, Pierce, Skagit and Snohomish counties.

"It's a national disgrace that one out of every six men and women in our shelters once wore a uniform to serve our country," said HUD Secretary Donovan. "But we know that by providing housing assistance and case management services, we can significantly reduce the number of veterans living on our streets. Working together, HUD, VA and local housing agencies are making real progress toward ending veteran homelessness once and for all."

"Under the leadership of President Obama, we have made significant progress in the fight to end homelessness among veterans, but more work remains," said VA Secretary Shinseki. "The partnership between the federal government and community agencies across the country has strengthened all of our efforts to honor our veterans and keep us on track to prevent and eliminate veteran homelessness by 2015."

"After serving our country, veterans should not end up on the streets, homeless," said HUD Northwest Regional Administrator Mary McBride. "They have given us a great deal. Helping them obtain decent, affordable housing is the right thing to do in return for their service."

Today's awards went to:

Previously, Alaska has been awarded 145 VASH vouchers, Idaho has been awarded 115 VASH vouchers, Oregon has been awarded 743 VASH vouchers and Washington state has been awarded 1,280 VASH vouchers.

This funding to local housing agencies is 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 (www.usich.gov/PDF/FactSheetVeterans.pdf) serves as a roadmap for how the federal government will work with state and local agreements to confront the root causes of homelessness, especially among former servicemen and women.

The grants announced today are part of $75 million appropriated for Fiscal Year 2012 to support the housing needs of approximately 10,500 homeless veterans. VA Medical Centers (VAMC) provide supportive services and case management to eligible homeless veterans. This is the first of two rounds of the 2012 HUD-VASH funding. HUD expects to announce the remaining funding by the end of this summer.

VAMCs work closely with the homeless veterans then refer to the public housing agencies for these vouchers, based upon a variety of factors, most importantly the need for and willingness to participate in case management. The HUD-VASH program includes both the rental assistance the voucher provides and the comprehensive case management that VAMC 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.

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HUD's mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes: utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life; build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination; and transform the way HUD does business. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet at www.hud.gov and espanol.hud.gov. You can also follow HUD on Twitter at @HUDnews or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HUD, or sign up for news alerts on HUD's News Listserv.

VA is the federal government's second-largest cabinet office. Secretary Shinseki has outlined three key priorities for the department: increase Veteran access to VA services and benefits, eliminate the disability claims backlog, and end Veteran homelessness. VA provides health care to more than 6 million people each year, in 91 million outpatient visits and 960,000 hospitalizations. This year, VA will provide over $1 billion in specialized homeless program funding, more than $58 billion annually in disability pay and pensions to 4.5 million Americans, $10 billion in educational assistance, $1 billion for home loans and $2.6 billion for life insurance. More information about VA is available at www.va.gov.