SW MN housing authorities receive CARES Act funding

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson announced $472 million nationally in CARES Act funding to help low-income families during the coronavirus pandemic, including $5.6 million to 60 public housing authorities (PHAs) throughout Minnesota. This funding can be used by public housing authorities to help families assisted by Housing Choice Vouchers (HCV) and Mainstream vouchers prevent, prepare for and respond to the coronavirus.

KLGR-area Public Housing Authorities that received funding include:

New Ulm EDA, $14,462

Renville County HRA, $13,138

Kandiyohi County HRA, $40,354

McLeod County HRA, $17,361

Housing and Redevelopment Authority of Chippewa County, $13,865

Housing and Redevelopment Authority of Yellow Medicine County, $7,456

The eligible coronavirus-related activities include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Procuring cleaning supplies and/or services to maintain safe and sanitary HCV units, including common areas of PHA-owned Project Based Voucher (PBV) projects.
• Relocation of participating families to health units or other designated units for testing, hospitalization, or quarantine, or transportation to these locations to limit the exposure that could be caused by using mass transportation.
• Additional costs to supportive services vendors incurred due to coronavirus.
• Costs to retain or increase owner participation in the HCV Program, such as incentive or retention costs (e.g. the PHA offers owner an incentive payment to participate in recognition of added difficulties of making units available for HCV families to rent while stay-at-home orders or social distancing practices are in effect).
• Costs for providing childcare for the children of PHA staff that would not have otherwise been incurred (e.g. children are at home due to school closings, PHA staff are working outside of regular work schedules, etc.).