HUD
No. 01-110 Further Information: In the Washington, DC area: 202/708-0685 Or contact your local HUD office |
For
Release Tuesday November 6, 2001 |
HUD AWARDS $14.2 MILLION IN GRANTS TO HELP 73 CITIES FIGHT HOUSING DISCRIMINATION
WASHINGTON - Housing and Urban Development Secretary Mel Martinez today awarded $14.2 million in grants to groups in 73 cities to help them fight housing discrimination.
The grants, funded under HUD's Fair Housing Initiatives Program, will go to public and private fair housing groups and state and local agencies across the country. These groups will use the funds to investigate allegations of housing discrimination, educate the housing industry and public about housing discrimination laws, and work to promote fair housing.
"Today's announcement reinforces HUD's continued commitment to ensuring that communities across America are free of discrimination," said Martinez. "These grants will provide communities with a variety of education initiatives aimed at promoting fair housing."
The grants are allocated as follows:- Private Enforcement Initiative - About $7.9 million was awarded for one-year
grants of up to $250,000 to assist private, tax-exempt fair housing enforcement
organizations in the investigation and enforcement of alleged violations of
the Fair Housing Act and substantially equivalent State and local fair housing
laws.
- Education and Outreach Initiative - About $4.8 million was allocated for
one-year grants of up to $100,000 to inform and educate the public about the
rights and obligations under federal, state and local fair housing laws. About
$600,000 of the grant money, which went to seven groups, is specifically going
to programs that have a special focus on the fair housing needs of persons
with disabilities, so that housing providers, the general public, and persons
with disabilities themselves better understand their rights and obligations.
- Fair Housing Organizations Initiative - About $1.5 million was awarded
for three-year grants of about $1 million for projects that serve rural and
immigrant populations in areas where there currently is no existing fair housing
organization, or are otherwise under-served.
Below is a breakdown of funding to groups in the following locations:
Alabama - $97,956 Massachusetts - $439,120 Arizona - $320,779 Michigan - $899,497 Arkansas- $110,766 Minnesota - $360,000 California - $785,659 Mississippi - $100,000 Colorado - $335,114 Missouri - $590,121 Connecticut - $200,028 New Jersey - $350,000 Delaware - $189,125 New Mexico - $198,145 District of Columbia - $350,000 Nevada - $100,000 Florida - $548,719 New York - $1.3 million Georgia - $300,115 Ohio - $835,063 Idaho - $100,000 Pennsylvania - $813,007 Illinois - $1 million Tennessee - $1.8 million Iowa - $95,563 Texas - $731,252 Kansas - $293,484 Virginia - $13,500 Kentucky - $195,789 Washington - $35,625 Louisiana - $100,000 Wisconsin - $350,000 Maryland - $139,850
Nearly 150 applicants were vying for the funding announced today. The 92 winners
were chosen based on the soundness of approach, the extent of the problem, the
capacity and experience of the applicant, coordination within the community
and the leveraging of other resources.
Additionally, some of the grants will address sophisticated and subtle forms
of discrimination through paired testing as well as other investigative tools.
HUD gave special emphasis to grant applications that target under-served populations,
such as rural residents and immigrants, especially non-English speaking racial
and ethnic minorities.
The Fair Housing Act bars housing discrimination on the basis of race, color,
religion, sex, disability, family status and national origin. The Act covers
the sale, rental, financing and advertising of almost all housing in the nation.
Fair housing investigations are conducted by HUD investigators, state and city
agencies working with HUD, and private fair housing groups that receive HUD
funds.
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NOTE: A list and descriptions of all grants are on the HUD website.
Anyone who believes they have experienced housing discrimination
is asked to call HUD's Housing Discrimination Hotline at 1-800-669-9777.
They can also visit HUD's fair housing website.