WASHINGTON, DC. The Homeless Assistance Grants programs of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will receive about a $100 million increase for FY 06, under an agreement reached by conferees for the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. While this is less than the President's request for a $200 million increase for the Samaritan Initiative for persons experiencing chronic homelessness, this $100 million will be important to the continuing commitment of the Administration and Congress on homelessness and represents an 8.5% increase in homeless resources at HUD.

Conferees also provided an increase for the budget of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, raising its appropriation by 20% and extending its authorization.

FROM COAST TO COAST in recent weeks, new public sector investment commitments are coming from Mayors and Governors who are forwarding jurisdictional initiatives to end chronic homelessness. Last week's e-news reported on the recent $1 billion commitment of New York City and New York State that will result in 9000 units of permanent supportive housing for persons experiencing homelessness in New York City.

LOS ANGELES. New Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who city will soon release its 10-Year Plan, recently committed to a $1 billion housing bond measure, which will put $50 million into the city's housing trust fund for homeless people. Speaking at the Mayor's Housing Summit sponsored by the Los Angeles Business Council at UCLA's Anderson School of Management, Mayor Villaraigosa commented on the city's homeless population, including its Skid Row, stating, "All of us have a responsibility to do something about it." The Mayor called for private sector partnership, noting that $8.5 million in private contributions will be added to the trust fund.

IN MINNESOTA, the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, one of three state agencies leading the state's 10-Year Plan, was recognized with a national award from the National Council of State Housing Agencies (NCSHA), which presented their Annual Award for Program Excellence to MHFA for its Ending Long-Term Homelessness Initiative. MHFA Commissioner Tim Marx accepted the award, according to Laura Kadwell, the state's point person for the initiative.

Under Governor Tim Pawlenty, the MHFA's Ending Long-Term Homelessness Initiative Fund is both the financial building block of the state's initiative and is critical to its success. The funding program is designed to offer maximum funding flexibility and can be used for capital funding, operating subsidies, and tenant and sponsor-based rental assistance to assist households experiencing long-term homelessness using permanent housing. The Fund provides a portion of the total funding awarded by the Agency to achieve the goal of ending long-term homelessness.

This program has produced results. The Agency has awarded a total of $13,400,768 from its funding sources to provide a total of 1198 housing units, with 424 units targeted to long-term homeless households over the past year. From May 2004 to date, the MHFA has awarded $8,240,000 from this Fund for a total of 311 units for youth, single adults, and families experiencing long-term homelessness. More than $5 million has been awarded to eight projects for construction or rehabilitation of 61 new units in both single-site and mixed use properties for long- term homeless individuals and families. Two of these projects also received nearly $500,000 in operating subsidy to ensure project viability. Additionally, 250 rental assistance vouchers have been created, providing rental subsidies for those experiencing long- term homelessness. The rental assistance contracts provide more than two million dollars in aid and cover 24 months of subsidy costs for tenant and sponsor- based scattered-site rental assistance.

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA. In California this week, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger took new steps to forward his recent commitment to create a State Interagency Council on Homelessness and new housing initiatives. California this week issued a Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) as part of the Governor's Homeless Initiative, which is an interagency effort that also includes the purchase by CalHFA of $10 million in existing loans for supportive housing projects, freeing up funds for new loans. The funding program component of the Governor's Homeless Initiative assists with the development of permanent supportive housing for persons with severe mental illness who are chronically homeless. It is a joint project of the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), the California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA), and the Department of Mental Health (DMH).

The NOFA announced deferred payment permanent loans under HCD's Multifamily Housing Program (MHP); construction, bridge and permanent loans from CalHFA; and limited grant funds for rental assistance from DMH for new construction, rehabilitation, or acquisition and rehabilitation of permanent rental housing, and the conversion of nonresidential structures to rental housing. Projects must have commitments of Mental Health Services Act funds for supportive services, and typically require rent subsidies as well. Projects may use 9% federal low income housing tax credits.

Eligible applicants are local public entities, for-profit and nonprofit corporations, limited equity housing cooperatives, individuals, Indian reservations and rancherias, and limited partnerships in which an eligible applicant or an affiliate of an applicant is a general partner. Applicants or their principals must have successfully developed at least one affordable housing project.

Also this week, the new State Interagency Council held an initial meeting and, as part of the preparatory work in the development of a Statewide 10-Year Plan, sought input into what the State should be doing to carry its efforts forward. One important goal of the Statewide Plan will be to target policy, statutory and regulatory improvements that can be made to improve the leveraging and delivery of resources. Meetings have now occurred ion Los Angeles and San Francisco, with an additional meeting scheduled for Sacramento on Monday, November 28, 2005.