NEW YORK CITY. Government partners gathered this week in New York City to highlight the recently announced $1.45 million award of new housing funds to two New York City organizations that will now provide supportive housing and service to over 70 chronically homeless people with alcohol addiction. United States Department of Housing and Urban Development Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development Pamela Patenaude (pictured here) joined HUD Region I Director Sean Moss, New York City Department of Homeless Services Commissioner Linda Gibbs, and United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Deputy Director Mary Ellen Hombs for the announcement of funds under the Housing for People Who Are Homeless and Addicted To Alcohol program at Project Renewal's Kenton Hall program on the Bowery. Region II Coordinator Carleton Lewis also took part. In New York City, Project Renewal and Common Ground Community received new resources under the program. Representing the awardees at the event were James McCloskey, Common Ground's Director of the Street to Home Initiative, and Stephanie Cowles, Associate Director of Project Renewal. As reported here last week, the innovative housing program, developed in close consultation with the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness and targeted to help individuals living on the streets, will benefit 555 persons living on the streets for at least 365 days over the last five years and who also have a long-term addiction to alcohol.

A dozen pilot programs in 11 cities around the country are receiving two-year grants through HUD's new Housing for People Who Are Homeless and Addicted To Alcohol program, a special initiative designed to assist homeless persons who also struggle with chronic alcoholism.

WASHINGTON, DC. "Every year an estimated 100,000 youth are released from incarceration. Many have problems with substance abuse and few and fragmented services are in place as these offenders reenter the community and reintegrate into their families," SAMHSA Administrator Charles Curie said. "These grants will help communities bring together a system of services to help ensure these young people stay off drugs and have the opportunity to live, work, learn and participate fully in their communities." Administrator Curie is pictured here. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has announced over $19.2 million in grants over four years to support substance abuse treatment and related services for juveniles and young adults returning to their families and communities from incarceration. The grants are designed to provide substance abuse treatment to both juveniles and young offenders up to age 24. The 11 fiscal 2005 grants, totaling almost $4.7 million, will be used to form partnerships among community organizations, including correctional or juvenile facilities, to plan, develop and provide substance abuse treatment and related re-entry services. New grants were given to programs in several states and the District of Columbia. A look at the grantees provides some insight into the variety of program approaches that will be used. The Colorado Young Offender Community Re-entry, Treatment and Coordination Program will provide 200 particularly high-risk offenders with a uniform and coordinated combination of substance abuse, community support, restorative justice, and cognitive education services. DC's Institute for Behavioral Change program is designed to develop and implement a successful substance abuse re-entry treatment system for female juvenile offenders. The Bay Area Young Offender Re-entry Program (YORP) in Florida will provide a comprehensive continuum of care focused on family reintegration and self- efficiency for 390 sentenced substance abusing juveniles ages 14 -18 who are reentering the community from a residential commitment program. The Center for Adolescent Wellness program, administered by the Cobb and Douglas Counties Community Services Board (CSB) in Georgia, will offer best practice substance abuse treatment and system linkage services to sentenced substance-abusing youth between the ages of 14 and 18 who are under the jurisdiction of the juvenile justice system and who are reentering the community. CAB Health and Recovery Services in Massachusetts will establish the Responsible Recovery program, a community re-entry program for young adults, age 18 through 24, who are approaching release from the Middleton House of Corrections, a medium security facility serving Essex County. Volunteers of America Oregon, in collaboration with Metropolitan Family Service, Better People, and Irvington Covenant Community Development Corp., will conduct a comprehensive, developmentally - appropriate program designed to significantly reduce the rate of relapse and recidivism, increase the rate of retention in substance abuse programs, and improve the quality of lives of young adult offenders.

Aliviane Inc., in El Paso is seeking to strengthen re- entry services to sentenced juvenile offenders ages 14 to 18 who are under the jurisdiction of the Texas Justice System. The Chesterfield Community Re- entry Program in Virginia is a comprehensive collaborative, and holistic approach to assisting up to 60 young offenders ages 18 -24 each year in making a successful transition from jail to their communities and families.

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA. The YWCA of Central Alabama was the site of the signing of Executive Order #31 by Alabama Governor Bob Riley last week, as he created a new Interagency Council on Homelessness. The Council, which will be chaired by the Governor's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives headed by Executive Director Terry Hasdorff, will develop an action plan to end chronic homelessness within 10 years, coordinate state agencies' services, and submit an annual accountability report outlining its accomplishments toward preventing and ending chronic homelessness in the state. The council is modeled after the federal Interagency Council on Homelessness. United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano and Alabama Alliance to End Homelessness President Brenda Durham joined Governor Riley for the event. "Multiple state agencies currently bear some responsibility of serving the homeless and those who are at risk of becoming homeless. Addressing this problem requires collaboration among these agencies, and I believe Alabama's faith-based organizations, national service programs and charitable community groups can be effective partners in bringing compassion and hope to these people in such need," the Governor said. Stated Director Mangano, "This new Executive Order creates one of the most expansive and mission- oriented councils in our country. No state order has a more comprehensive involvement of every level of government or a more strategic approach to planning. In the breadth of the partnership envisioned, including federal, state, local, business, philanthropic, non-profit and faith-based partners, this Executive Order sets a new standard of collaboration and intent." YWCA President Sheryl Kimerling welcomed over 80 people who attended the event, including United States Department of Housing and Urban Development Regional Director and former Augusta Mayor Bob Young, Tuscaloosa Mayor Alvin DuPont, and Homewood Mayor Barry McCulley. Mayors of Selma and Huntsville were also represented. In addition to federal and state government partners, Big Brothers Big Sisters Alabama, Children's Trust Fund of Alabama, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Alabama, Sheriffs of Huntsville and Jefferson County, Jefferson County Housing Authority, AmSouth Bank, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham Cooperative Downtown Ministries, and Metropolitan Birmingham Services for the Homeless were present. Council Regional Coordinator Michael German also took part. COUNCIL ACTIVITIES. According to the Executive Order, in addition to developing a 10-Year Plan, the Council by next June 30 shall conduct cost/benefit analysis of the current supportive housing programs in Alabama and prepare a projection of the overall costs and benefits of implementing the Alabama Action Plan to End Homelessness, review and recommend measures to maximize federal resources and improve state administered Mainstream Service Programs (Medicaid, TANF, SSI, CHIP, Workforce Investment Act, Food Stamps, and Veteran's Health Care and Benefits) for homeless individuals and families, and recommend measures to establish state policies that assure appropriate housing and community treatment for individuals with disabilities discharged from institutional settings. Further, the Council will develop a strategy to implement the plan and to recommend resource, policy and regulatory changes necessary to accomplish the goals of the plan, recommend and assist in developing partnerships with private entities, including corporate, philanthropic and faith and community-based organizations, as well as the federal and local government, to obtain involvement and support, monitor and oversee the Plan implementation to ensure accountability, identify and maximize the leveraging of resources to improve the system of services for people who are homeless or are at risk of becoming homeless, and identify a sub-group to meet with the Governor to discuss and explain the Council's recommendations. COUNCIL WORK GROUP. The Executive Order also provides a role for other entities in the state to interact with the Council's work through a work group. The work group shall report its activities and recommendations to the Council and be comprised of state agency staff, representatives of the state's continuum of care organizations, a statewide homeless advocacy group, and other public and private entities as determined by the Council. The work group shall also assist the Council in reaching out to local communities regarding the state's Plan to prevent and end homelessness. COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP. Membership of the Council will include the Directors of the Alabama Departments of Human Resources, Mental Health, Corrections, Veterans Affairs, Industrial Relations, Public Health, Economic and Community Affairs, Homeland Security, and Children's Affairs; the state's Medicaid agency, the Office of Workforce Development, the Alabama Housing Finance Authority, and the State Board of Education. In addition, a representative of the League of Municipalities, four members from non- profit agencies concerned with housing issues and service provision, two members from faith-based organizations working with homeless and/or substance abuse treatment, two members from the private sector, and two members each from the Alabama Senate and House of Representatives will participate.

COUNCIL ADVISORY BOARD. An Advisory Board will be composed of Ex-Officio members who shall advise the Council on matters relating to their appropriate agencies of federal government, including the United States Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Veterans Affairs, Education, Health and Human Services, Labor, and Homeland Security.

WITH THIS ISSUE, the e-newsletter continues its series of reports on veterans' Stand Down events around the country. Stand Downs are community- based events targeted to homeless veterans and designed to offer a welcoming atmosphere, a safe gathering place, and easy access to a broad range of services for homeless veterans. Stand Downs are derived from the military practice of 'standing down" from customary activity or the front line. BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS. "This is all I ever needed," stated a veteran in a wheelchair, holding up a temporary ID card from the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles. " Everyone was so helpful; I was treated with such dignity." This veteran was one of over 500 assisted with an array of services at the Massachusetts Stand Down 2005 hosted by Veterans Benefits Clearinghouse (VBC) on August 12-13 at Clifford Park in Boston's South End. VBC Executive Director Ralph Cooper observed, "Much to my amazement after 14 years of doing Stand Downs in Massachusetts, it was just as compelling and there were just as many homeless veterans - 540 in fact - looking for help." Director Cooper is pictured here with United States Department of Housing and Urban Development Deputy Regional Director James Barnes. Other federal partners present to assist included the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Labor. The three goals of the Stand Down were to help homeless veterans obtain permanent housing, to assist attendees in establishing a source of income either through employment or benefits, and to stabilize participants' health conditions.This year's theme, "A Hand Up, Not A Hand Out" emphasized assistance that would help end the homelessness of veterans by providing services that included housing search, a job fair, legal assistance and Registry of Motor Vehicle ID Cards or Drivers Licenses. The efforts of many public and private sector partners ensured that a broad range of needed services were on site. 88 homeless veterans utilized the on-site housing search services. Taking applications at the Stand Down were partners from Boston Housing Authority, Committee to End Elder Homelessness, Elders Living at Home Program, and Chelsea Soldiers Home, according to Carol Klein, social worker for the Health Care for Homeless Veterans Program in Boston who coordinated the housing search services.

Attendees used free Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) services to travel to the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles to obtain photo identification cards and renew driver's licenses, free of charge. Vernell Baker, who coordinated the Stand Down for VBC, said both participants and the volunteers who helped them came away the better for being there. Among the volunteers were 34 National Guard volunteers from Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford, one of whom stated, "If they don't send me here next year to help, I'll come on my own anyway."

WASHINGTON, DC. The Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) at the United States Department of Health and Human Services will convene the Third National Conference Addressing Homelessness for People with Mental Illnesses and/or Substance Use Disorders on October 26-28 in Washington, DC. The theme of the 2005 conference, which is free, is Preparing People for Change: Knowledge and Choice. The theme focuses on increasing the knowledge of consumers so they may readily share in treatment decisions, as well as increasing the sensitivity of service providers to the unique needs of people who are homeless. The goal of the conference is to engage care providers and consumers in an open and ongoing dialogue about individually tailored and effective services for the homeless community. Co-sponsors of the conference are the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment and the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, also part of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of HHS.

Highlights of the conference will be plenary presentations by SAMHSA Administrator Charles Curie and CMHS Director Kathryn Power. Full day training sessions will be available on October 26 and 28. On- line registration for the conference is available at http://www.nrchmi.samhsa.gov

THE e-news regularly profiles the federal members of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness. With this issue, we profile the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), a component of the Department of Homeland Security. The Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) administers the Emergency Food and Shelter (EFS) National Board Program, which was originally authorized under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987, PL 100-77, as amended. The National Board is comprised of representatives from American Red Cross, Catholic Charities USA, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, The Salvation Army, United Jewish Communities, United Way of America, and FEMA. The FEMA representative also serves as the Chair. The National Board selected United Way of America to serve as its fiscal agent and Secretariat for Fiscal Year 2004. The National Board provides training, technical assistance and outreach to organizations serving homeless people. In addition, representatives of the National Board conduct semi-annual listening sessions with Local Boards and Local Recipient Organizations (LROs) throughout the country to elicit feedback on how the program is working and how it can be improved. The National Board holds monthly meetings, usually in the Washington, D.C. area to: evaluate the funding formula used each fiscal year; select jurisdictions of highest need for food and shelter assistance, determine the amount to be awarded to each, and distribute the funds; make policy decisions; monitor overall program administration; review the program budget and ensure that funds are being properly expended; and, consider requests for waivers to program guidelines. In most years, the Board conducts one of its monthly meetings outside the Washington, D.C. area. Program activities for FY 2004 included providing approximately 73 million meals, 4.2 million nights of shelter, and payment of more than 250,000 rent, mortgage and utility bills. Nearly 12,000 non-profit and local government agencies in 2,506 cities and counties across America received awards from the $153 million appropriated to the EFS Program for FY 2004. In addition, accomplishments include monitoring the Local Boards and LROs administration of the program, conducting 15 training workshops, and performing site audits for 75 EFS Program awards.

The collaboration with the National Coalition of Homeless Veterans to assist with funding Stand Downs, which are grassroots, community intervention programs to help the nation's homeless veterans receive assistance and be connected to resources and benefits, continues the services begun in FY 2003. EFS Program funds were used to provide meals and in some cases food to take away from these events. In FY 2003, 51 Stand Down events were funded. Ten additional Stand Downs received funding in FY 2004.

WITH THIS ISSUE, the e-newsletter continues its focus on elements of the Title V federal surplus property and opportunities to secure resources for homeless programs under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Title V provides that state and local governments, as well as nonprofit organizations, are eligible to apply for land and buildings that have been determined by the federal government to be "suitable and available" for eligible uses to benefit homeless people. More than two dozen agencies of the federal government are included as "landholding" agencies that may have property. In accordance with 24 CFR part 581 and section 501 of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11411), as amended, HUD publishes a weekly notice to identify Federal buildings and other real property that HUD has reviewed for suitability for use to assist the homeless. The properties are reviewed using information provided to HUD by Federal landholding agencies regarding unutilized and underutilized buildings and real property controlled by such agencies or by GSA regarding its inventory of excess or surplus Federal property. More information on HUD's role in the Title V program is available at http://www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/homeless/programs/t 5/index.cfm Properties reviewed are listed in the weekly notice according to the following categories: Suitable/available, suitable/unavailable, suitable/to be excess, and unsuitable. The properties listed in the three suitable categories have been reviewed by the landholding agencies, and each agency has transmitted to HUD: (1) Its intention to make the property available for use to assist the homeless, (2) its intention to declare the property excess to the agency's needs, or (3) a statement of the reasons that the property cannot be declared excess or made available for use as facilities to assist the homeless. Properties listed as suitable/available will be available exclusively for homeless use for a period of 60 days from the date of this Notice. Where property is described as for ''off-site use only'' recipients of the property will be required to relocate the building to their own site at their own expense. Homeless assistance providers interested in any such property should send a written expression of interest to HHS, addressed to John Hicks, Division of Property Management, Program Support Center, HHS, room 5B- 17, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857; (301) 443-2265. (This is not a toll-free number.) HHS will mail to the interested provider an application packet, which will include instructions for completing the application. In order to maximize the opportunity to utilize a suitable property, providers should submit their written expressions of interest as soon as possible.

More information on the Title V program and agency roles is available on the HHS web site at http://www.psc.gov/aos/federalprop/titleV.html where material includes:Title V Overview, HHS Title V Roles, Eligible Homeless Programs, How to Apply, Application Review Criteria, Approved Applicants (Transferees) Responsibilities, Frequently Asked Questions, and Other Resources.