NON -Montgomery Ferrial Organizations are building emergency plans after the Federal Government transferred the date on March 1 to confirm $ 5 million to a grant, which includes leasing for hundreds of residents of rehabilitation programs.
Last month, the Federal Government was organized by the Federal Government to release funds promised nine organizations throughout the Federation as part of a combined application for a subsidy last month. But the county still has not heard anything from the Department of Housing and Development of US cities.
Although the money is to be delivered on different dates, Montgomery Ferris officials claim that they are in the face of radio silence from HUD – causing uncertainty and confusion as to whether and when critical dollars appear, when the administration of President Donald Trump wants to reduce federal expenses.
“Based on some of the information we hear, there is simply chaos, there will be a lot of layoffs and it is not clear who will make sure that these funds will actually be distributed,” said Neil Machija, a democrat, who chairs the council of commissioners.
A subsidy of $ 5 million provides housing assistance for about 200 households as part of programs focused on a wide range of sensitive populations, including juvenile people and people who survived domestic violence.
Delays in delivery or lack of it may have waves in Montgomery, because people in the housing program lose support, and support agencies lose the ability to transfer people from emergency shelters to more constant apartments. The result, as supporters say, would be more people on the streets.
Makhija said that Montgomery’s county assesses the options for helping Non -Profit and considering court disputes because it pushes the federal government to provide the necessary funds.
“Even if we can have funds for gaps, it is not as if there were too many funds for an apartment now,” he said. “We have a homelessness that grew and the cost of apartments certainly contributed to this.”
Nine non -regional grant organizations expect that the funds will achieve at different times. Access Services, one of the recipient of funds, is to have its money until June 1.
Part of the subsidy of the organization is primarily used for the lease of 15 apartments in Montgomery for homeless people with disabilities.
The inhabitants of these houses usually remain for 18-24 months, while receiving additional services designed to prepare them for independent homes. The group said that if access services do not receive funds by June 1, this may start canceling these lease agreements.
“Sensitive people returned to the streets and lived on the streets when you know, people do not have space outside. The camps are sweeping, people clean – they do not want to see homelessness, “said Debra Curtin, vice president of the organization for housing and services for children.
House Youth Valley House, which uses the subsidy program to provide apartments of 27 adults and children in Montgomery, was to have funds from March 1.
Lisa Weingartner, the executive vice president of the House Valley youth, said that it is not unusual, that the bureaucratic process in HUD means delayed funds. However, she said it was extraordinary that the organization did not even hear this year from the Federal Agency, leaving uncertainty and confusion.
Congress voted for providing funds, so Weingartner thinks that the money will finally come. In the meantime, she said that the youth house is lucky, that they have enough money to keep programs while waiting.
“We haven’t heard anything and heard that nobody knows what would happen,” said Weingartner. “As an agency, we were really thought out in preparation, how we maintain our programming, help young people and families stay in their homes, houses will remain if there is a delay.”
Not every program is so ecstatic.
Curtin, from access, said that the organization still determines how much money the programs must keep if the money does not come according to plan in June. But it will be tight.
“We would have some buffer, but we would not be able to maintain these programs independently,” she said.
Stacey Dougherty, executive director of Laurel House, even one organization that would stop the services in Montgomery, said Stacey Dugherty, executive director of Laurel House, shelter of domestic violence, which expects funds in October.
Dougherty said that with fewer housing programs there will be more people in the emergency sheltersIN And fewer people leave the shelter beds to go to a constant apartment, there will be less space. The result, as she said, will be more people on the street, and more victims of domestic violence got stuck at home with the perpetrators.
“If one falls or two falls, he begins the actions of the shelters,” she said.
“Maybe very quickly, not only in the case of what happens generally for the Laurel House Services, but also what happens when services for victims of domestic violence are cut off, what happens with the rest of the social security network in the community,” she added.
