Housing and Urban Development Secretary Andrew Cuomo today awarded $5,547,420 in grants to fight drug abuse and other crimes in public housing and HUD-assisted housing in Kentucky.

Kentucky's grants will be distributed to housing authorities and owners of HUD-subsidized housing for low-income families in the following cities:

• Bowling Green……………... .................. $ 157,500
• Campbellsville .................... ....................$ 202,160
• Central City………............................….. $ 50,000
• Columbia ………...................…...........… $ 50,000
• Covington ……...............……................. $ 577,800
• Cynthiana .….. ...................………....…. $ 79,500
• Danville.....…….……................………….$ 119,400
• Eddyville.............................……………....$ 50,000
• Falmouth.............................….…………...$ 50,000
• Frankfort..............................…………….. $ 192,300
• Franklin…...............................…………... $ 104,500
• Fulton.......……….........................………...$ 63,482
• Georgetown.........……….............………... $ 254,400
• Henderson.......................……....……….....$ 129,000
• Hickman...................…........……….…….. $ 50,000
• Hopkinsville........…..........………..…….... $ 137,700
• Lebanon..........................……… ……….... $ 63,000
• Lexington..........................………. ..……....$ 563,500
• Louisville..........................…………..…..... $1,259,600
• Martin..........................………………….... $ 114,000
• Morgantown.....................….......………… $ 144,000
• Mount Sterling....................….………........$ 65,650
• Murray…............................……………..... $ 164,800
• Paducah...................….…….......…..…… .. $ 318,300
• Paintsville.............................……………… $ 219,200
• Pikeville...........................………………......$ 100,128
• Princeton…..................…......…………...... $ 102,500
• Richmond .....................….….....…..…… .. $ 92,100
• Williamsburg..…............…........…..…… .. $ 72,900

"These grants are good news for some of the poorest families in Kentucky and bad news for drug dealers who terrorize them," Cuomo said. "We will fight drug abuse with prevention and treatment programs and with a crackdown on drug dealers and other criminals. We are telling drug dealers in HUD housing to find another line of work or be sent to another type of subsidized housing - a prison cell."

Cuomo said that President Clinton's recent signature on the Department's $24.5 billion budget for the 1999 fiscal year, which he called "the best HUD budget in 10 years," will speed the transformation of public and assisted housing.

"HUD is transforming public housing from isolated ghettos of poverty, drugs, despair and crime into safe and economically integrated communities of opportunity," Cuomo said.

Nationwide, HUD is awarding $305.2 million in Drug Elimination Grants this year - more than in any previous year. The grants will be distributed in the next several weeks in this way: $280.6 million to 749 public housing authorities; $8 million to 39 Indian Tribes; and $16.6 million to 143 privately owned housing developments that receive HUD assistance.

Vice President Al Gore, Cuomo and Attorney General Janet Reno announced a four-part enforcement and prevention strategy to fight crime and drugs in public housing in June 1997. The grants announced today are one element of that strategy.

The Drug Elimination Grants are awarded on a competitive basis, based on the seriousness of the drug and crime problem facing a housing authority or assisted housing development, and the strength of local plans to address the problem. About 900 housing authorities, 60 Indian tribes and 500 privately owned housing developments applied for the grants being awarded this year.

HUD has awarded more than $1.6 billion in Drug Elimination Grants since 1989, including the grants being awarded this year.

In public housing, the Drug Elimination Grants are used for: drug prevention, intervention and treatment programs; reimbursing law enforcement agencies for providing additional security; hiring security guards and investigators; resident anti-crime patrols; and physical improvements to housing developments to enhance security - such as fencing, lighting and improved locks.

In assisted housing, the Drug Elimination Grants are used for: drug prevention and education programs; referrals to drug treatment and counseling; and physical improvements to developments to enhance security. Individual grants for assisted housing developments are limited to a maximum of $125,000. Downing Place Properties LLC in Lexington received a grant of $125,000.

HUD's budget for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1 increases funding for HUD's key programs and renewals of Section 8 rental assistance by a total of more than $2 billion in the budget over 1998 levels. Spending was increased on most HUD programs and wasn't cut in any programs.

Legislation passed in the same bill as HUD's budget, and signed by the President, will:

• Transform public housing by reducing segregation by race and income, encouraging and rewarding work, bringing more working families into public housing, and increasing the availability of subsidized housing for very poor families. In addition, the bill improves living conditions in public housing, gives the poorest families neighbors who will be role models of working families, and reduces crime. The bill also allows HUD to continue to tear down the largest failed public housing projects and replace them with new townhouse-style developments.

• Expand the supply of affordable housing by enabling 90,000 more families to get Section 8 rental assistance vouchers that will subsidize their rents in privately owned apartments - the first increase in vouchers in four years.

• Increase homeownership by raising the limit on home mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration from the current range of $86,317 in low-cost housing areas to $170,362 in high-cost areas. The bill increases the loan limits to a range of $109,032 in low-cost areas to $197,621 in high-cost areas. The higher ceiling on FHA-insured home mortgages opens the door of homeownership to thousands of families needing FHA insurance to get mortgages, but locked out now because the current loan limits have not kept pace with rising home prices.

HUD ANTI-DRUG ASSISTANCE FOR COMMUNITIES IN KENTUCKY

• BOWLING GREEN: $157,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Bowling Green for community policing, educational and cultural classes, and recreational opportunities.

• CAMPBELLSVILLE: $202,160 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Campbellsville Housing Authority to increase police patrols, enhance security and offer prevention and education classes.

• CENTRAL CITY: $50,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Central City to increase police patrols and bolster partnerships between city government, the police department and the community.

• COLUMBIA: $50,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Columbia to set up resident patrols and neighborhood watch programs and enhance security.

• COVINGTON: $577,800 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Covington to improve police patrols and add educational and recreational programs for residents.

• CYNTHIANA: $79,500 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Cynthiana to add police on foot and on bicycles in the community.

• DANVILLE: $119,400 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Danville to add a full-time police officer, education programs for youngsters and jobs and job training for adults.

• EDDYVILLE: $50,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Lyon County for increased law enforcement and drug prevention programs.

• FALMOUTH: $50,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Falmouth for increased law enforcement and drug prevention programs.

• FRANKFORT: $192,300 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Frankfort to add more police and educational and recreational programs.

• FRANKLIN: $104,500 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Franklin Housing Authority to increase patrols by private police, improve security and set up educational activities for residents.

• FULTON: $63,482 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority Fulton for community policing, counseling and youth programs.

• GEORGETOWN: $254,400 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Georgetown for a combination of security and preventive-based approaches to fight drug-related crime.

• HENDERSON: $129,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Henderson for community policing, teen education courses and counseling.

• HICKMAN: $50,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Hickman for police and a drug counselor.

• HOPKINSVILLE: $137,700 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Hopkinsville to improve security and set up drug prevention programs for residents.

• LEBANON: $63,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Lebanon for security and drug prevention programs.

• LEXINGTON: $438,500 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Lexington to add uniformed police patrols and recreational and educational programs. Downing Place Properties, LLC was awarded a $125,000 multifamily Drug Elimination Grant to enhance security and establish a drug prevention program for residents of the development.

• LOUISVILLE: $1,202,240 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Louisville for law enforcement, drug prevention intervention and treatment initiatives. Another $57,360 in grants will go to the Housing Authority of Jefferson County to provide additional security and protective services in the Newberg/Norfork neighborhoods.

• MARTIN: $114,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Martin for education, counseling and computer skills programs and to reimburse law enforcement.

• MORGANTOWN: $144,000 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Morgantown to continue the Challenge to Eliminate Drugs (CED) program and implement the Stepping Forward Program to help adult residents transition from welfare to work.

• MOUNT STERLING: $65,650 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Mount Sterling to expand police bicycle patrols and community policing.

• MURRAY: $164,800 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Murray for community policing, neighborhood watch and social service programs.

• PADUCAH: $318,300 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Paducah for more police, college scholarships and prevention groups offered by West Kentucky Mental Health.

• PAINTSVILLE: $219,200 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Paintsville for police services, tutoring, and recreation programs.

• PIKEVILLE: $100,128 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Pikeville for extra security, youth programs and physical improvements.

• PRINCETON: $102,500 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Princeton for increased law enforcement and prevention programs.

• RICHMOND: $92,100 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Richmond for additional law enforcement, drug education, youth services and family support programs.

• WILLIAMSBURG: $72,900 in Drug Elimination Grants will go to the Housing Authority of Williamsburg to increase training and employment opportunities and for treatment and intervention programs.