Funding Will Support Local Efforts to End Homelessness Across Commonwealth
Boston, MA - United States Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Edward J. Markey (D-MA), along with Representatives Richard E. Neal (D-MA-01), James P. McGovern (D-MA-02), Joseph P. Kennedy III (D-MA-04), Katherine Clark (D-MA-05) and Lori Trahan (D-MA-03), today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded $76,567,387 in federal grants to support efforts to end homelessness in Massachusetts.
The funding, which was awarded through HUD's Continuum of Care (CoC) program, will assist nonprofit providers, states, and local governments as they work to provide emergency, transitional, and permanent supportive housing for individuals experiencing homelessness and survivors of domestic violence; help connect individuals at risk of experiencing homelessness with supports and services; and identify local service and housing needs.
To view a complete list of the 217 state and local homelessness projects funded in Massachusetts by these grants, please click here.
"States, local governments, and non-profits are on the front lines of the fight against homelessness, and they need our full support," said Senator Elizabeth Warren. "Everyone deserves a safe, stable, and affordable place to call home, and this new federal funding will go a long way towards realizing this basic right for families and individuals in Massachusetts who are experiencing homelessness -- while also ensuring residents at risk of experiencing homelessness have access to assistance to prevent homelessness."
"The way we prevent homelessness from becoming hopelessness is by providing resources that help build dignity and opportunity," said Senator Ed Markey. "These HUD Continuum of Care grants will ensure that our cities and towns across the Commonwealth can serve the most vulnerable individuals and families in our communities and help them achieve a basic right every American deserves -- a safe home."
"I know that when people in western Massachusetts have opportunities to make a better life, they take them," said Congressman Richard E. Neal. "Taking down the barriers that trap people into situations where they find themselves homeless requires action from as many angles as possible. I'm thankful for the HUD Continuum of Care Grants and the work that these organizations do each and every day with their assistance to help end homelessness in our communities."
"In the richest country on the planet, it is simply unacceptable for anyone to experience homelessness," said Congressman Jim McGovern. "Fortunately, there are amazing groups across Massachusetts that are working to assist families that have fallen on hard times. I'm glad that these new federal funds will help organizations in Worcester and Greenfield that are working to make a difference in our community, and I'm proud of our commonwealth's congressional delegation for their advocacy and support for funding these crucial programs. America can and must do more to address the issues of homelessness, food insecurity, and domestic violence that trap so many families in the cycle of poverty."
"Ending homelessness in this country demands a community-driven response that sees people for their potential and treats them with the dignity they deserve," said Congressman Joe Kennedy III. "With this federal funding, Fall River, Taunton and cities and towns across our Commonwealth can lift people up and provide them with the support they need."
"HUD's Continuum of Care program has been a key resource for communities to provide housing to those in need," said Vice Chair Katherine Clark. "I am particularly proud to have been able to secure an additional $50 million for this program to help survivors of domestic violence through my role on the House Appropriations Committee. With these extra federal dollars, re-housing services in Cambridge and across the state of Massachusetts will be able to reach more people in need of support."
"Ending homelessness in the United States is one of the greatest moral and economic challenges we face," said Congresswoman Lori Trahan. "Grant funding provided by HUD's Continuum of Care program has been a critical resource empowering government and nonprofit leaders at every level to assist those in their communities who are experiencing homelessness or unsafe conditions because of domestic violence. I'm grateful that communities across the district I represent will be benefiting from this funding, and in awe of those who work every day to help the most vulnerable among us."
More information about HUD's CoC program is available here.
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