WBAP/KLIF – AUSTIN – Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs announces distribution of $52.9 million in Housing Stability Service Grants to 31 organizations statewide, including Family Gateway, Inc., of Dallas, due to receive $225,000. The money is to be used to help veterans and others suffering housing stability, in part, caused by the pandemic. Housing Stability Services Grants make up a portion of the $1.3 billion dollars TDHCA received from U.S. Treasury Department through the Consolidated Appropriations Act to help income-eligible Texans struggling because of the Covid 19 pandemic. Other groups receiving grant money include Haven for Hope, Goodwill, Salvation Army, the Other Ones Foundation, and more.
The money must be spent by August 31,2022, and can be used for things such as in-person and web-based clinics to help households access the Texas Rent Relief Program as well as other rental assistance programs; landlord incentives to improve and expand housing options for those facing barriers to housing (including criminal backgrounds, poor credit, debt or poor rental histories); helping obtain identification and job placement, and providing stipends or short-term payments to public or private campgrounds to make cabins or other dwellings available for persons needing temporary housing solutions.
$20 million in a grant to the Texas Access to Justice Foundation is to be used toward JP court attorneys helping people facing evictions, clinics to help people apply for Texas Rent Relief Program, and no-cost legal services to help those with any housing stability issues.
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