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HHS Announces Grants for Anti-Poverty Initiatives and Job Opportunities for Low-Income Individuals

Community Service Block Grant Recovery Act Funding Information

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 provides for $1 billion in additional funds to the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) program for Federal Fiscal Year 2009. As with regularly appropriated CBSG funds, Recovery Act funds may be used for the reduction of poverty, the revitalization of low-income communities, and the empowerment of low-income families and individuals in rural and urban areas to become fully self-sufficient.

States will receive Recovery Funds, as a separate allotment, under the same formula used for funds allocated under regular annual appropriations. 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and Federal and State-recognized Indian Tribes and Tribal organizations will receive $985 million in Recovery Funds. The Recovery Act mandates that States pass through no less than 99 percent of their Recovery Act allocations for grants to "eligible entities" under the CSBG Act, commonly referred to as Community Action agencies.

States and Tribes will be required to submit to the Office of Community Service (OCS) an amendment to the FFY 2009 CSBG Application and Plan regarding the use of the Recovery Funds. They will be expected to make the amended plan available for public inspection and comment and begin distributing Recovery Funds as soon as they become available. Applications are due on May 29. For more information, click here.

Job Opportunities for Low-Income Individuals

The Office of Community Services' (OCS) Job Opportunities for Low-Income Individuals (JOLI) program supports business development and expansion opportunities, including micro-enterprise and self-employment opportunities, in an effort to help Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients and other low-income individuals achieve economic self-sufficiency. Grantees may provide technical and financial assistance to private employers in low-income communities in order to create sustainable employment and business opportunities.

Funded projects should focus on one of the following three program strategies: (1) new business ventures, (2) business expansion, and (3) self-employment/micro-enterprise projects. A minimum of 20 percent of the JOLI funds must be allotted to direct financial assistance to program participants for creating or expanding a business.

Grantees must ensure that TANF recipients and other low-income individuals are recruited to participate in business development and expansion activities, and to fill positions created under the program. The program must help TANF recipients and other low-income individuals overcome personal or community barriers, and ensure that the businesses and jobs remain viable for at least six months after the end of the grant. For JOLI grants, low-income individuals are defined as those living in households with incomes at or below poverty, as defined by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Guidelines on Poverty, found here.

In addition to a well-planned and viable strategy for business creation or expansion, applicants must have in place: (1) needed management, staff, and other resources, (2) written commitments from third-party partners, (3) evidence of site control, and (4) referral sources to identify low-income individuals to fill the positions.

JOLI grants are awarded to non-profit organizations having 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) status. Applications must be received by May 8. To read the full notice, click here.

Five Sites Added to "Mission Homeless" Initiative

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is seeking qualified entities for long-term ground lease redevelopment opportunities at five VA campuses nationwide. VA's primary objective in leasing the properties is for selected developers to establish and thereby increase the number of housing units with on-site supportive services available to homeless Veterans, including those at imminent risk of homelessness, and eligible non-Veterans.

Campuses with property available for redevelopment include:

o Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center - Uptown Division Campus (Augusta, GA)
o Cheyenne VA Medical Center (Cheyenne, WY)
o Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital (Hines, IL)
o Connecticut Healthcare System, Newington Campus (Newington, CT)
o Togus VA Medical Center (Augusta, ME)

For additional information about redevelopment opportunities at these sites, please visit http://www.va.gov/ASSETMANAGEMENT/MissionHomeless/index.asp.

The final Request for Proposals (RFP) was released on Monday, March 30, 2009 and responses are due to VA by May 29, 2009 at 12 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The RFP for each campus is available for download after a brief online registration on the appropriate project website.

Questions regarding these development opportunities may be sent to missionhomeless@va.gov.

NCHV Offers Training on the Federal Grant Process

The National Coalition for Homeless Veterans is offering two day training
sessions for organizations currently serving or looking to serve veterans.
The first day of the training will go over the basics of federal grant
applications with particular attention paid to the Grant and Per Diem
funding offered from the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Homeless
Veterans Reintegration Program funds given by the Department of Labor.
Participants will also learn about the necessary OMB regulatory circulars
and how to make sure that they maintain compliance with their funders.
Information will also be given on creating and meeting measurable objectives
when writing a project plan.

The second day of training will focus on employment and permanent supportive
housing. Information will be given on where veterans can go for employment
assistance and programs offered to veterans looking for work. The
Corporation for Supportive Housing will provide an overview of the basics of
permanent supportive housing as well as give examples of programs that have
worked in the past.

These training sessions are aimed at those groups who are just starting out
or looking to expand their work with veterans.

Scheduled trainings:

* Overland Park, KS (Mark Ross Community Center, 8101 Marty St.) -
April 20-21, 2009, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
* Houston, TX (Location To Be Announced) - June 8-9, 2009, 8:30 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m.
* Dallas, TX (Dallas VA Community Center, 4500 S. Lancaster Rd.,
Building 75) - June 11-12, 2009, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

To register for the Overland Park training, send an e-mail with your name,
organization and contact information to <mailto:kansastraining@nchv.org>
kansastraining@nchv.org.

To register for the Houston training, send an e-mail with your name,
organization and contact information to <mailto:houstontraining@nchv.org>
houstontraining@nchv.org.

To register for the Dallas training, send an e-mail with your name,
organization and contact information to <mailto:dallastraining@nchv.org>
dallastraining@nchv.org. This training is offered in partnership with the VA
North Texas Health Care System's Comprehensive Homeless Center.

If you have any questions about the training sessions, please feel free to
respond to this email or call our office.

Thank you.

Kristina Hunken
Program Assistant
National Coalition for Homeless Veterans
333 1/2 Pennsylvania Avenue SE
Washington, D.C. 20003
202-546-1969
<http://www.nchv.org> www.nchv.org

HUD/FHA's Single Family Nonprofit Program:

If you are interested in becoming approved to participate in HUD/FHA Single Family Housing Programs for HUD-approved nonprofits, please visit HUD's website at www.hud.gov and select information for "Grantees/Nonprofits". There is a page on that site that informs you how to become approved to do one or all of the following:

1. Act as a mortgagor using FHA mortgage insurance; (that means the nonprofit would receive the same qualifications on an FHA loan with the same terms as an owner-occupant)

2. Purchase the Department's Real Estate Owned (HUD Homes) at a discount of 10% or more;

3. Provide Secondary Financing/Down Payment Assistance (HUD/FHA does not supply organizations with funds for this program; rather if approved by HUD, the nonprofit would be able to issue a secondary lien for Down Payment Assistance - like a "soft second" that is forgivable after a specified period of time).

Attached for your review is Mortgagee Letter (ML) 2002-01. This is the primary ML that governs the FHA Single Family Program for Nonprofits. Also provided is Attachment 1: The Application and Attachment 2: The Affordable Housing Plan (this document does not need to be submitted for Secondary Financing/Down Payment Assistance applicants). I hope this information is helpful.

Also click on the link to review the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) document regarding HUD/FHA's Nonprofit Program: http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/np/faqs_np.cfm

Once you've had the chance to review the guidelines concerning the Single Family Nonprofit Program, send an email so that your agency can make an application to apply for approval for participation to HUD/FHA Single Family programs. The e-mail must also include the following information: your organization's legal name, address, and executive director's name and contact information (phone number, fax number and e-mail address). Additionally the e-mail should indicate whether the organization is a nonprofit or instrumentality of government, the date of your organization's 501 (C)(3) determination letter and whether your organization itself(not staff members) has a minimum of two years, within the last five years, of housing development experience. Housing development experience is defined as acquisition, rehabilitation, and sale to low-to-moderate income persons. In order to meet the minimum requirements, your organization's 501©(3) must be at least two years old at the application submittal date. Also, your organization must possess a minimum of two years, within the last five years, of housing development experience. This e-mail should be sent to:

Jeanette M. Lambert
Jeanette.M.Lambert@hud.gov

US Dept. of Housing and Urban Development

Atlanta Homeownership Center
Program Support Division

404/331-5001 ext. 2544

This section includes information on how to submit your application-

To Prospective NP applicant:

Thank you for expressing an interest in becoming approved by HUD to participate in the Federal Housing Administration's Nonprofit programs.

The Nonprofit Data Management system used for the electronic submission of applications is not fully operational at this time. As a result, we are requesting that applicants submit their applications via email.

To become familiar with the application process and documentation requirements, please read Mortgagee Letters 2000-08 and 2002-01 and their attachments. You'll find Mortgagee Letters by clicking the following link:

http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/letters/mortgagee/index.cfm

The items required to be included in the application are delineated in the "Nonprofit Approval Checklist" which may be found in Attachment 1 and Attachment 2 of Mortgagee Letter 2002-01. Attachment 1 specifies which of those items must be submitted, depending on whether you are applying for approval to act as a mortgagor using FHA mortgage insurance, purchase HUD homes at a discount, or provide secondary financing.

You will need to assemble the information required in the checklist(s) and save each checklist item as a separate document. Save the document using the following filenames, which correspond to the list of items delineated in Mortgagee Letter 2002-01, Attachment 1:

1. IRS Letter - File Name: IRSLetterwithCert

2. Articles of Organization - File Name: ArticlesIncorpwithCert

3. Voluntary Board of Directors - File Name: VoluntaryBoardCert

4. Board Members - File Name: BoardMembers

5. Staff List - File Name: StaffListwithResumes

6. EIN/SSNs - File Name: EINSSN

7. Loan Signature Authority - File Name: SignatoryAuthority

8. Administrative Capability - File Name: AdminCapQCPlan

9. Financial Capability - File name: FinancialCap

10. Other Partners - File Name: Partners

11. Acting on Own Behalf - File Name: ActingOwnBehalfCert

12. HUD Approval Letter - File Name: ApprovLtr

13. Affordable Housing Program - AHP

(Special Note: The Affordable Housing Program should be emailed as one document

The Affordable Housing Program narrative must address all items in the order they appear in Mortgagee Letter 02-01, Attachment 2.)

14. Board Approval of Plan - File Name: AHPApprov

15. Past FHA Performance - File Name: PastPerformance

16. Two Year Experience - File Name: AgencyExperience

17. Lending Institutions - File Name: Lender

18. Mortgage/Note Copies - File Name: MtgeNote

19. W-9, SAMS-1111 - File Name: W9SAMS1111

20. Photos and Floor Plans - File Name: PhotosFloorPlan

21. Lease Forms - File Name: LeaseForms

Application Certification - File Name: ApplicationCert

Recertification Requirements - File Name: RecertReq

When creating the documents for your application, do not save documents as JPEG files or put special characters such as #,* etc. in the file name. Please use standard file types such as PDF, WORD, and EXCEL files.

Once your application is completed and ready for submission, please email it back to Jeanette.M.Lambert@hud.gov within 30 days of this notification. Depending on the file size of your checklist items, you may need to submit your application in multiple emails, however please submit all application documents at the same time (not separately when each item is completed). Also, please try and consolidate as many application documents as possible into each email.

If you have questions during the application process, please call or email me.

If you're interested in purchasing a HUD Home directly, HUD approval is not required. You can purchase a HUD Home as an investor directly online at www.hud.gov and select "Homes for Sale". You would not receive a discount on the property like that of a HUD-approved nonprofit. Instead, you would be purchasing the home outright from HUD. Please keep in mind that the properties are sold "as-is" so it is important to get an inspection of the property prior to placing a bid.

If you should have additional questions, please call or email me.

Please feel free to visit the link provided below to view HUD homes for sale in your area:

http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/reo/reobuyfaq.cfm

or http://www.hud.gov/homes/index.cfm

Thanks for your interest in HUD/FHA Programs.

Jeanette M. Lambert

Housing Program Specialist

Atlanta Homeownership Center

Program Support Division

U.S. Dept of Housing and Development

404/331-5001, ext. 2544

Fax 404/331-4016

Jeanette.M.Lambert@hud.gov

"FHA:Your Door to Homeownership!" Since its inception in 1934, FHA has helped over 33 million families become homeowners. For additional information, dial 1-800-CALL FHA.