Rep. Matsui Announces $570,000 in Federal Funding to Help Prevent Veteran Homelessness in Sacramento
WASHINGTON, DC – July 21, 2009 – (RealEstateRama) — Congresswoman Doris Matsui (CA-5) announced an additional $570,000 to help combat homelessness among Sacramento’s veterans through the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing Program (VASH). Vouchers will be made available to the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA) to help provide permanent supportive housing for homeless veterans throughout the Sacramento community. The vouchers will be distributed to 70 displaced veterans and their families in Sacramento immediately.
“To provide our local veterans and their families with shelter in such troubled times, is in many ways, the least we can do,” said Congresswoman Matsui. “Our community must stand-up to support these servicemen and women in their time of need, as they have stood for us in ours. Many of the Sacramentans that will benefit from this program are often the most at risk: female service members and those with children.”
Sacramento veterans and their families qualifying for vouchers will be afforded the opportunity to elect their housing options through the voucher program, much like those receiving Section 8 aid, and asked to contribute no more than 30 percent of annual adjusted income. Additionally, the Veterans Affairs Medical Center will provide treatment and regular case management to help keep these at-risk veterans and their families in their homes.
“We are delighted that Sacramento County will be receiving these vouchers,” said La Shelle Dozier, Executive Director of the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency which serves as the Housing Authority for the City and County of Sacramento. “We look forward to working with the Veterans Affairs Medical Center to identify homeless veterans to participate in the housing program. This is a small way to support those men and women who have served our country so heroically get back on their feet. I have seen for myself how the combination of housing and supportive services can move someone from homelessness and hopelessness to employment, homeownership and self-sufficiency.”
“Our nation relies on the men and women who bravely leave their families and risk their lives to fight for our freedom, to protect our way of life,” stated Rep. Matsui. “When these heroes return, it is important that we continue to support them in every way possible, and these funds will serve to honor and reaffirm the promise we made to our veterans when they agreed to serve and protect our nation.”
The HUD-VASH program is a unique collaborative project between the U.S. Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development which works towards the goal of moving homeless veterans and their families into stable housing and providing these men and women with support services to improve their quality of life. The social services, administered by the local Veterans Affairs (VA), are designed to improve the veterans’ health and ability to remain stable and community integrated. In this partnership, SHRA will provide the vouchers for permanent housing to homeless veterans, while the VA Medical Center will provide veterans with case management and supportive services to promote and maintain recovery and housing.
CONTACT: Mara Lee
(202) 225-7163
