VIRGINIA HOUSING AUTHORITIES AWARDED ALMOST $1.1 MILLION TO
HELP FAMILIES BECOME SELF-SUFFICIENT

WASHINGTON - Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson announced $44.5 million in funding
today to public housing agencies to states across the country, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. The
funding will be used to help low-income people get job training, employment and homeownership counseling.

Today's awards included a total of $1,085,726 awarded to the Virginia Housing Development Authority and housing authorities in Chesapeake, Danville, Hampton, Harrisonburg, Newport News, Norfolk, Petersburg, Richmond, Roanoke, Waynesboro, Virginia Beach and Fairfax, James City, Loudoun and Prince William counties in Virginia.

"This funding helps individuals find employment to eventually become economically independent," said Jackson. "In fact, many families who take advantage of the support services and escrow-accounts provided under this program have become first time homeowners."

HUD's Housing Choice Voucher Family Self-Sufficiency (HCV/FSS) program provides funds to public housing agencies to hire family self-sufficiency coordinators. FSS coordinators assist adults who receive rental assistance through
the HCV program with job training, childcare, counseling, transportation and job placement programs. Some of the awardees received funding to hire an additional coordinator to assist families who are ready to purchase their first home.

Participants in the HCV/FSS program sign a contract that stipulates the head of the household will get a job and
the family will become self-sufficient within five years. While enrolled in the program, as the family's income rises,
a portion of that income goes to an interest-bearing escrow account. The resulting savings can be used for down payment on a home purchase, paying educational expenses, starting a business or paying back debts.

Recipients of Housing Choice Voucher Family Self-Sufficiency funding in Virginia include: