HUD No. Region VI: 12-53 Patricia Campbell: (817) 978-5974 Scott Hudman: (713) 718-3107 VA Contact: Josh Taylor (202) 461-7216 |
For Release Tuesday March 27, 2012 |
HUD, VA PROVIDE $569,000 FOR PERMANENT HOUSING AND SUPPORT FOR ADDITIONAL 100 HOMELESS VETS IN LOUISIANA
New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Shreveport Receive Funds
NEW ORLEANS - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki announced today that HUD will provide $569,653 to four public housing agencies in Louisiana to supply permanent housing and case management for an additional 100 homeless veterans in the state. With today's awards, the total number of HUDVASH vouchers in Louisiana is now 830. At the end of the release, the following information can be found:
- List of the Louisiana cities receiving funding;
- Names of the housing authorities and VA Centers administering the program in those cities;
- Number of new vouchers announced today;
- Total number of vouchers each housing authority now has as the result of previous HUD/VASH grants combined with today's vouchers; and
- Today's funding.
The permanent supportive housing assistance announced today is provided through HUD's Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing Program (HUD-VASH), a program administered by HUD, VA, and local public housing agencies across the country.
"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."
The grants announced today are part of $72.6 million appropriated nationally for all 50 States and the District of Columbia for Fiscal Year 2012 to support the housing needs of more than 10,000 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.
VA Medical Centers (VAMC) provide supportive services and case management to eligible homeless veterans. VAMCs work closely with these veterans and then refer them to local public housing agencies, which administer the Section 8 vouchers. Participants are chosen based upon a variety of factors, most importantly the need for, and willingness, to participate in case management.
Veterans participating in the HUD-VASH program rent privately owned housing and generally contribute no more than 30 percent of their income toward rent. The VA offers eligible homeless veterans clinical and supportive services through its medical centers across the U.S., Guam and Puerto Rico.
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 (http://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. HUD's annual "point in time" estimate of the number of homeless persons and families for 2011 found that veteran homelessness fell by nearly 12 percent (or 8,834 people) since January 2010.
CITY | HOUSING AUTHORITY | VA CENTER | # OF VOUCHERS | TODAY'S FUNDING |
New Orleans | Housing Authority of New Orleans | Southeast LA HCS | Today: 25 | $180,830 |
Total: 125 | ||||
Baton Rouge | Housing Authority of East Baton Rouge | Southeast LA HCS/Baton Rouge CBOC | Today: 25 | $193,817 |
Total: call | ||||
Lafayette | Housing Authority of the City of Lafayette | Alexandria VAMC/LaFayette CBOC | Today: 25 | $94,818 |
Total: 60 | ||||
Shreveport | Bossier Parish Section 8 | Overton Brooks VAMC Shreveport | Today: 25 | $100,187 |
Total: 145 | ||||
Louisiana Total | Today:100 | $569,653 | ||
Total: 830 |
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