HUD Awards $2.8B in Annual Homelessness Funding for Continuums of Care
Today, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced $2.8 billion in competitive Continuum of Care (CoC) awards for thousands of local homeless service and housing programs across the country.
The CoC program is the largest source of federal grant funding for homeless services and housing programs for people experiencing homelessness. Today’s annual funding builds on a $315 million first-of-its-kind package that HUD awarded in January to help communities specifically address unsheltered and rural homelessness.
Of the $2.8 billion:
- $80 million is for non-competitive Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program renewal and replacement grants; and
- $52 million is for new projects that support housing and service needs for survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.
Specifically, HUD sought projects that:
- End homelessness for all people experiencing homelessness;
- Emphasize racial equity and anti-discrimination policies for LGTBQ+ people;
- Use a Housing First approach;
- Reduce unsheltered homelessness and the criminalization of homelessness;
- Improve system performance;
- Partner with housing agencies to leverage access to mainstream housing programs;
- Partner with health agencies to coordinate health and supportive services, including to prevent and respond to future infectious disease outbreaks;
- Advance racial equity and address racial disparities in homelessness;
- Engage people with lived experience of homelessness in decision-making; and
- Support local engagement to increase the supply of affordable housing.
The Biden-Harris administration is committed to addressing the nation’s homelessness crisis. All In: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness set a goal to reduce homelessness 25% by 2025 and ultimately end it.