Minnesota public housing authorities receive $5.6 million to help keep residents housed

KSTP
[Flicker/Tony Webster ]

Minnesota was awarded $5.6 million to public housing from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to help keep residents housed.

According to a release, Secretary Ben Carson announced $472 million nationally in CARES Act funding to help low-income families during the coronavirus pandemic. Of that $472 million, $5.6 million will be award to 60 Minnesota public housing authorities.

The funding can be used by public housing authorities to help families assisted by Housing Choice Vouchers (HCV) and Mainstream vouchers to prevent, prepare for and respond to the coronavirus.

The local impact of the housing assistance funding had been made available for the public here.

The Housing Choice Voucher Program (HCV) includes the Mainstream Program that provides tenant-based vouchers serving low-income households.

The eligible coronavirus-related activities include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Procuring cleaning supplies and/or services to maintain safe and sanitary HCV units, including common areas of PHA-owned Project Based Voucher (PBV) projects.
  • Relocation of participating families to health units or other designated units for testing, hospitalization, or quarantine, or transportation to these locations to limit the exposure that could be caused by using mass transportation.
  • Additional costs to supportive services vendors incurred due to coronavirus.
  • Costs to retain or increase owner participation in the HCV Program, such as incentive or retention costs (e.g. the PHA offers owner an incentive payment to participate in recognition of added difficulties of making units available for HCV families to rent while stay-at-home orders or social distancing practices are in effect).
  • Costs for providing childcare for the children of PHA staff that would not have otherwise been incurred (e.g. children are at home due to school closings, PHA staff are working outside of regular work schedules, etc.).

You cand find more information on HUD’s response to the pandemic here.