U.S. Department Of Housing, Urban Development Spends $3.5B To Combat Homeless Crisis

'Nobody should have to live in their car or on the streets,' said HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman. 'These funds will provide shelter to Americans when they need our help the most.'

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced July 31 that it will provide $3.5 billion in competitive funding to assist with the nation’s homeless crisis.

HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman said the funds will be dispersed among homeless services organizations for supportive services and housing programs for homeless persons. “This year’s funding opportunity makes available the largest amount of funding in history under the Continuum of Care program and reflects the Biden-Harris administration’s continued commitment to tackle the nation’s homelessness crisis with the urgency it requires,” Todman said.

“Nobody should have to live in their car or on the streets. These funds will provide shelter to Americans when they need our help the most.”

The funds will come from HUD’s Continuum of Care Program (CoC), the largest source of federal grant funding for homeless services. The program receives more than 400 applications and funds close to 7,000 homeless services projects throughout the year. It is operated by housing entities of nonprofit providers, local government, states, and Indian tribes.

In addition to the funds, HUD is issuing a two-year Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) that will effectively streamline the application process and reduce administrative burdens significantly.

The department is also applying a first-of-its-kind cost of living adjustment CoC in an effort to combat increasing living costs. The adjustment will give additional support and pay to homeless assistance providers, which Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development Marion McFadden says is often forgotten about.

“Our approach this year incorporates the feedback we received from providers to increase support for staff and reduce administrative burden by moving to a two-year application cycle so that staff can focus less time on paperwork needed to submit federal grant applications and more time on their core duties helping people experiencing homelessness,” McFadden said.

Rockville Housing Enterprises in Maryland is one of the entities that was awarded $154,000 of the funds. According to the Daily Record, the money came through HUD’s Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) Initiative, aimed to prevent youth in the child welfare system from experiencing homelessness.

The announcement complements existing funding that HUD made available for permanent supportive housing through the Youth Homelessness System Improvement Grants and the 2023 Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program, supported by the Biden-Harris administration.