BUSH ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCES $43.7 MILLION IN HOUSING COUNSELING GRANTS FOR LOW INCOME FAMILIES
Jefferson, Lafayette, St. Marin and Iberia Receive Grants in Louisiana

NEW ORLEANS - Nearly 910,000 individuals and families will have a greater opportunity to find housing or keep the homes they have because of more than $43.7 million in housing counseling grants announced today by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson. In Louisiana, Jefferson, Lafayette, St. Marin and Iberia received a total of $61,000. A list of the grantees and amounts follows.

It is estimated these grants will assist more than 709,000 people nationally to either become first-time homeowners
or remain homeowners after their purchase. The grants were awarded to 18 national and regional organizations and approximately 340 State and local housing counseling agencies. These organizations will provide counseling services and will help meet the Bush Administration's goal of increasing minority homeownership by 5.5 million families by the end of the decade.

"HUD's Housing Counseling Program plays a key role in support of the President's goal," said Jackson. "Under this Administration, more families are receiving counseling services than ever before and more families are purchasing
and keeping their homes. In addition, this program is also helping more families find the help they need to secure decent and affordable rental housing."

The organizations that provide housing counseling services help people become or remain homeowners or find rental housing. HUD-funded housing counseling agencies also assist homeless persons to find the transitional housing they need to move toward a permanent place to live.

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 as
well as enforces the nation's fair housing laws. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet and espanol.hud.gov.

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Jefferson Community Action Program
Jefferson, LA $26,000 - Comprehensive Counseling
Jefferson Community Action Programs Housing Counseling Program provides comprehensive housing counseling services, primarily in Jefferson Parish, in the following areas: pre and post occupancy, pre and post rental, pre and post purchase, search assistance, money management, mortgage default, rental delinquency, recertification of rent subsidy, energy conservation, rehabilitation, housing consumer education and first time home buyers assistance, which includes setting up Individual Development Accounts (IDA).

Lafayette Consolidated Government
Lafayette, LA $20,000 - Comprehensive Counseling
Lafayette Consolidated Government Neighborhood Counseling Services Program is a HUD approved comprehensive housing counseling agency whose mission is to provide comprehensive housing counseling and supportive services
to low and moderate-income persons. The agency provides budget and financial counseling, community-oriented activities ane educational workshops. Renters counseling, default and delinquency counseling, fair housing
counseling, home maintenance classes, homebuyers training, reverse mortgage counseling and information and referrals are provided by certified housing counselors and administrators.

St. Marin, Iberia, Lafayette Community Action Agency
Lafayette, LA $15,000 - Comprehensive Counseling
The St. Marin, Iberia, Lafayette Community Action Agency (SMILE as it is widely known by its acronym) serves as
the primary provider of social services in a tri-parish region in southern Louisiana. It served as one of the founding members of the Acadiana Regional Coalition on Homelessness and Housing (ARCH). The Agency has a long history of working collaboratively on a local, state and national levels to identify and solve problems that present barriers to low-income, disadvantaged and at-risk families.