The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on Thursday announced the availability of an additional $20 million in funding for the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program to help eligible veteran families obtain and maintain housing.
Additional funding is available to 245 Public Housing Agencies in the 43 states enrolled in the program, which pairs rental assistance with case management and other supportive services provided by Veterans Affairs. HUD awarded $1,230,404 to five agencies in New York, according to a press release.
New York agencies who received funding included: the New York City Housing Authority which received $1,080,675; the Town of Amherst with $106,950; the Glens Falls Housing Authority with $18,197, the Rome Housing Authority with $13,089 and Village of Manlius Christopher Community with $11,493.
“HUD is committed to keeping those who proudly served our country off the streets and putting an end to veteran homelessness,” said HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman. “Through additional funding resources for one of our most valuable programs, HUD-VASH, we can provide a much-needed means to an end for our veterans at risk of homelessness.”
These additional administrative fees will allow the agencies to build on their previous work and action planning with their Veterans Affairs Medical Center partners. HUD-VASH agencies are specifically encouraged to use funds available under this notice to take on additional administrative activities such as:
- Housing search assistance activities
- Landlord recruitment
- Owner incentives, retention payments and security deposits
- Landlord/tenant mediation activities
“Landlords hold the key to a brighter future for veterans in need of a home. HUD and Veteran Affairs already award funding for housing vouchers and services to our Veterans,” said Alicka Ampry-Samuel, HUD Regional Administrator for New York and New Jersey. “Now HUD and [Veterans Affairs] are providing additional funding to public housing authorities to help Veterans who need a hand with their housing search.”
Additionally, a new set of policy changes will ensure veterans experiencing homelessness are not disqualified based on their service-connected disability benefits from supportive housing projects subsidized by project-based rental assistance through the HUD-VASH program. Veterans experiencing homelessness often receive benefits as a result of a physical or mental injury or condition that was acquired or worsened during military service. Before this change, these benefits were considered income when determining eligibility for housing assistance, causing some veterans to exceed the income threshold for these programs.
Since the program’s inception in 2008, HUD-VASH has assisted more than 200,000 veterans to exit homelessness and obtain permanent affordable housing. Thanks to these efforts the number of veterans experiencing homelessness has fallen by 52% since 2010.
