HUD AWARDS $49 MILLION IN GRANTS TO HELP LOW-INCOME FAMILIES
GET JOB TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT
Florida receives $1.4 million: $177,000 to four housing agencies in North Florida

JACKSONVILLE - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Steve Preston, in announcing that public housing agencies in 48 states, the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico will receive nearly $49 million to provide low-income people with the necessary job training to put them on a path toward self-sufficiency said, "This program has proven its effectiveness in helping families develop the skills that lead to stable employment. Getting a decent job
and increasing a person's potential for higher paying employment is the first step to becoming economically independent."

Four agencies in North Florida, including the Tallahassee Housing Authority, the Jacksonville Housing Authority, the Ocala Housing Authority and the City of Pensacola Housing Department received a total of $177,333 to help low-income residents obtain better jobs and become more economically independent.

Funded through HUD's Housing Choice Voucher Family Self-Sufficiency Program (HCV/FSS), the grants allow public housing agencies (PHAs) to work with welfare agencies, schools, businesses, and other local partners to develop a comprehensive program to help participating individuals develop the skills and experience to enable them to obtain jobs that pay a living wage.

PHAs use the funding to hire family self-sufficiency coordinators to link adults in the Housing Choice Voucher
program (formerly Section 8) to local organizations that provide job training, childcare, counseling, transportation
and job placement. PHAs can also hire homeownership coordinators to help families get homeownership counseling.

Participants in the HCV/FSS program sign a contract that stipulates the head of the household will get a job and
the family will no longer receive welfare assistance at the end of the five-year term. As the family's income rises,
a portion of that increased income is deposited in an interest-bearing escrow account. If the family completes its
FSS contract, the family receives the escrow funds that it can use for any purpose, including a down payment on
a home, paying educational expenses, starting a business or paying back debts.

North Florida agencies include:

For a complete list of local housing authorities receiving funding visit HUD's website.

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HUD is the nation's housing agency committed to increasing homeownership, particularly among minorities;
creating affordable housing opportunities for low-income Americans; and supporting the homeless, elderly, people with disabilities and people living with AIDS. The Department also promotes economic and community development, and enforces the nation's fair housing laws. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the
Internet and espanol.hud.gov.