The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has announced awards for $1.41 billion in funding for nearly 7,000 local homeless assistance programs. The awards are part of the Obama Administration’s Opening Doors strategy to prevent and end homelessness. The plan puts the country on a path to end veterans and chronic homelessness by 2015 which includes significant amount of elderly Americans. HUD statistics counted 643,000 homeless people during a given night in January 2009 and found that during 2009, 1.54 million people used emergency or transitional housing programs. The renewed funding comes from HUD’s Continuum of Care programs the provide assistance to existing local organizations.
“There is a tremendous need on our streets and in our shelters among those experiencing both long-term homelessness as well as families confronting a sudden economic crisis,” said Secretary Shaun Donovan. “These grants are the life blood for thousands of local housing and service programs that are doing the heavy lifting to meet President Obama’s goal of ending homelessness.”
Find more information on HUD’s Continuum of Care grants
