| Helping communities shift from short-term to long-term solutions to homelessness |
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Spotlight
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UPCOMING IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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 The 2013 General Assembly session begins today through February 23. We thank you for your support and participation in the past and future legislative sessions. On Monday, December 17, 2012 Governor McDonnell released his biennial budget amendments- without new funding for homelessness. Last year, the Governor included $1.5 million in new funding in fiscal year (FY) 2013. An additional appropriation for homeless assistance programs for FY2014 is necessary to continue progress that communities and the state have made in implementing practices proven to reduce homelessness. Funding in both budget years could end homelessness for an estimated 448 households, while ensuring that ending homelessness remains a state priority. Be sure to check out our 2013 Legislative Agenda, talking points, and stay tuned for Action Alerts. Housing Advocacy Day: Don't miss out on the opportunity to participate in Housing Day Thursday, January 10 from 8:00am - 1:30pm. Click here for more information and to register. |
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What's Happening Now
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 Our 1,000 Homes for 1,000 Virginians
Initiative made it to the front page of The Richmond Times-Dispatch for making headway in identifying and housing the chronically homeless.
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 Thanks to all who celebrated with us at our Holiday Party! Laughs, conversation, and holiday cheer spread throughout the room. |
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NEW ONLINE BENEFIT PROGRAM
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The Virginia Department of Social Services launched CommonHelp which gives Virginians the ability to apply and access benefits with this easy and secure self service delivery system. This tool will help you ensure that people experiencing homelessness are applying for and accessing the benefits to which they are eligible. Access to benefits is critical to assist clients in accessing affordable housing of their own.
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Where We've Been
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This December, VCEH went around the state to visit with our partners, attend events, facilitate or host meetings, and more!
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Harrisonburg and Front Royal: For a collaborative meeting with the newly merged Western Virginia Continuum of Care (CoC) to plan for the FY 2012 CoC application.
Waynesboro: For a meeting to discuss technical assistance for Waynesboro Continuum of Care application.
Roanoke: For the Governor's Housing Conference where we partnered with the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Resources, Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, and Virginia Supportive Housing to present Advancing Homeless Continuum of Care Strategies. VCEH also hosted a "Partners to End Homelessness" reception during the conference.
Richmond: For a regular meeting of leaders in the Richmond homeless response system- including shelter and service providers, housing developers, faith based partners, and law enforcement officers.
Richmond: For a meeting of the Virginia Coordinating Council on Homelessness that oversees implementation of the state plan to reduce homelessness by 15 percent by 2013.
Washington D.C.: For the NeighborWorks America Training Institute Symposium titled "Beyond Measure: Using Evaluation to Build Evidence and Drive Learning" where we presented on how integrating evaluation into organizations and programs can help the community development field achieve a greater social impact.
Richmond: For Governor McDonnell's announced budget amendments to the biennial budget.
Richmond: For a meeting with the Nonprofit Virginia Legislative Committee to finalize the collective agenda for the coming General Assembly session.
Webinar: For the Maximizing Multiple Funding Streams to Improve Employment Outcomes in which we learned ways to maximize outcomes for clients experiencing homelessness.
On the Phone: For the Statewide Outcomes Measurement conference call where we got feedback from you (thanks!) on the importance of adopting uniform statewide outcomes measurements.
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| Rapid Re-Housing Update |
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ANNOUNCED: SECOND YEAR OF PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP TO RAPIDLY RE-HOUSE FAMILIES EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS
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The Freddie Mac Foundation announced a second year of generous support for a public-private partnership among the Commonwealth of Virginia, the National Alliance to End Homelessness, and the Virginia Coalition to End Homelessness for an initiative aimed at utilizing rapid re-housing strategies to reduce family homelessness. The goal of the initiative is to transform homeless assistance in Virginia to a system that rapidly re-houses families experiencing homelessness and provides them with the support they need to maintain stable housing.
As part of this initiative, the National Alliance to End Homelessness will convene "Rapid Re-Housing Learning Collaboratives," whereby you will be offered the opportunity to collaborate with your peers on strategies to improve rapid re-housing programs for families experiencing homelessness. We will be inviting your participation, soon!
In addition, we will continue to update you on the progress of this initiative and will be asking for your partnership and active participation in many of the strategies that we will be pursuing. Stay tuned for more details and click here to read more about this initiative.
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State and Federal Policy
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VIRGINIA HOUSING TRUST FUND PLAN
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In November, the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) presented their plan for the Virginia Housing Trust Fund to the money committees of the General Assembly. In total, $5,350,000 is available for reducing homelessness. For a summary of the plan click here. If the General Assembly does not make changes to the submitted plan, the application is likely to be available mid-February with the submission date of April 15, 2013. VCEH encourages our partners to apply for both the loan and grant funds to maximize use of monies for homelessness. The funds will be dispersed as follows:
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Proposed Virginia Housing Trust Fund Allocation
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Loans
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Competitive Loan Pool
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$4,600,000
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Foreclosure Rehabilitation Loans
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$1,000,000
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Grants
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Competitive Grant Pool
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$750,000
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Foreclosure/Homeowner Counseling
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$500,000
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Administration
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$150,000
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Total
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$7,000,000
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CONGRESS AVERTS FISCAL CLIFF; HOMELESS FUNDING STILL AT RISK
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On Tuesday, Jan. 1, Congress passed a bipartisan bill to postpone the fiscal cliff, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (HR 8). However, this bill did not replace the across-the-board cuts to domestic and defense spending, known as sequestration. The bill has delayed cuts until March 1, with the expectation that Congress will compromise on an alternative deficit reduction deal. The postponed and proposed sequester would result in severely damaging cuts to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs including the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants (your Continuum of Care homeless assistance funding) and Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers. The National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) estimates that cuts to McKinney alone would result in 145,000 people homeless instead of housed. We must act to protect funding for these programs as Congress continues its discussions.
- Please call your Senators and Representative(s) and speak to their staff who handles housing issues. You can find their number by calling the congressional switchboard at (202)-224-3121.
- For talking points, click here.
For more information please see the NAEH website.
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 The Common Sense Housing Investment Act (H.R. 6677). Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) introduced this act, which would fund the National Housing Trust Fund with savings gained from modifications to the mortgage interest deduction. We urge you to support this reform. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, it would provide billions of dollars for low income rental housing and make tax subsidies for homeowners reach a broader and lower income population than it does now. |
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Have you received your annual membership renewal letter? If so, please renew! If you are unsure whether your membership is due, email vceh@vceh.org.
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The Virginia Coalition to End Homelessness is the statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing and ending homelessness in the Commonwealth of Virginia through community collaboration, capacity building, education and advocacy.
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Virginia Coalition to End Homelessness
vceh@vceh.org
PO Box 14649
Richmond, Virginia 23221
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