HUD ANNOUNCES $500 MILLION IN RECOVERY ACT GRANTS TO ADD AFFORDABLE RENTAL HOUSING, "GREEN" EXISTING PUBLIC HOUSING
$12.8 Million for 8 Pennsylvania Housing Authorities will increase energy efficiency, upgrade public housing and create jobs

WASHINGTON - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan awarded $500 million
in competitive grants today that will allow public housing authorities across the U.S. to build or renovate affordable rental apartments and make existing public housing units more energy efficient. The Public Housing Capital Funds
being awarded today are provided through The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act).
A full list of grants awarded today can be found on HUD's Recovery Act Website. The list includes $13.6 million in grants for the following Pennsylvania Housing Authorities: Bradford City Housing Authority ($379,000), Harrisburg Housing Authority ($3,400,000), Housing Authority of the County of Northumberland ($296, 945), Allegheny County Housing Authority ($4,438,285), Reading Housing Authority ($375,600), Schuylkill County Housing Authority ($821,000), Housing Authority of the County of Dauphin ($1,240,000) and the Housing Authority of the City of York ($2,694,942).

Today a total of 134 housing authorities across the country will receive funds to create energy efficient communities by rehabilitating existing public housing units. The agencies will have resources to install new energy efficient technologies to conserve energy, such as Energy Star appliances, high-efficiency boilers/furnaces and programmable thermostats or controls. In addition, 35 housing authorities will receive funds that will allow them to proceed with redevelopment or replacement of housing developments that were stalled because of a lack of private financing. This funding essentially fills the gap in private capital to allow work to continue.

"The grants being awarded today should give hope to families across the country that more affordable housing opportunities are on the way," said Donovan. "This Recovery Act funding will not only give housing authorities the resources they need to jump start production of affordable housing, but it will also reduce energy costs and mitigate negative environmental impacts, while creating much-needed 'green' jobs across the country."

In February, just eight days after President Obama signed the Recovery Act into law, HUD allocated nearly $3 billion
in Recovery Act funding to more than 3,100 public housing authorities across the U.S. Distributed by formula, that funding is already being put to work to improve public housing and create safer, more livable environments for lower income residents.

The funding being announced today is part of an additional $1 billion in Public Housing Capital Funds designated by
the Recovery Act to be awarded competitively. HUD accepted applications under this program from public housing authorities between June 22 and August 18. Grants under the program are now being awarded to public housing authorities that effectively addressed the requirements in the Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) under the
following four funding categories:

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HUD is the nation's housing agency committed to sustaining homeownership; 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.