HUD announces $22.8 million to help people experiencing homelessness in Dallas

Special to The Dallas Examiner

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced that it will provide $22.8 million in competitive funding to homeless services organizations across the local Continuum of Care, which includes the city of Dallas, led by the CoC’s lead agency Housing Forward, for supportive services and housing programs for people experiencing homelessness.

The funding opportunity reflects the Biden-Harris administration’s continued commitment to equity and evidence-based solutions to address homelessness. It also reinforces the administration’s commitment to boost housing supply and lower costs by supporting local engagement to increase the supply of affordable housing.

“Every person deserves to live with dignity and security in safe, stable, and affordable home,” said HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge. “Coupled with the historic resources in President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, the Continuum of Care Program grants made available by HUD today will help more Americans experiencing homelessness move into homes and access critical supportive services like health care, education, and job training. HUD and the administration continue to prioritize equity in homelessness efforts and the humane treatment of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness, and the funding announced today will help communities do just that.”

The FY 2022 competitive funding is awarded through HUD’s Continuum of Care Program, the largest source of federal grant funding for homeless services and housing programs serving people experiencing homelessness. Nearly 400 Continuum of Care communities apply for the NOFO each year. HUD funds approximately 7,000 homeless services projects annually through the Continuum of Care Program.

Specifically, HUD is awarding funds to projects that:

• Reduce unsheltered homelessness
• Advance equity and target underserved communities
• Use a Housing First approach
• Improve system performance
• Partner with housing agencies to leverage access to mainstream housing programs

“Dallas has made strides in our collective response to homelessness in recent years, and we are thrilled that this funding will give another significant boost to our efforts,” Mayor Eric Johnson said. “I want to thank our federal partners and our community service providers for their support, and I look forward to continuing to work with them to reduce homelessness in our city. By working together, I am confident that we can create a stronger city that cares for the most vulnerable while improving the quality of life, health and safety of all of our residents.”

The city of Dallas utilizes a collaborative approach through the Dallas Real Time Rapid Rehousing initiative, to harness funding from the Federal government. This has been leveraged to bring other resources to the table to make homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring.

“The city and its partners have demonstrated its ability to deploy successful initiatives to reduce homelessness and this reinforces that the investments and priorities we have undertaken are aligned to the Housing-First principles.,” said City Manager T.C. Broadnax.

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