Senator Murray Announces American Rescue Plan Funding to Help House People in Washington State Facing Homelessness and Housing Insecurity

The nearly $28 million in emergency vouchers will go to public housing authorities across Washington state to help house people who are experiencing or facing homelessness 

Senator Murray fought to include billions in housing relief in the American Rescue Plan

ICYMI: Senator Murray Secures Hundreds of Millions in Housing Assistance for Washington State in American Rescue Plan – MORE HERE

Senator Murray: “I’m glad we were able to secure this critical relief to help people get safe, secure housing with the aid of public housing authorities in their communities”

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced housing relief from the American Rescue Plan totaling nearly $28 million for public housing authorities (PHAs) across Washington state to serve an additional 2,443 households. The funding will be distributed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) through the Housing Choice Voucher Program. See below for a breakdown of the funding.

The American Rescue Plan, which Senator Murray helped to shepherd through the Senate, allowed HUD to allocate additional vouchers to PHAs through an allocation formula designed to direct emergency vouchers to the PHAs operating in areas where eligible populations have the greatest need while also considering PHA capacity and the requirement to ensure geographic diversity, including rural areas. More specifically, Emergency Housing Vouchers are provided to PHAs to help assist individuals and families who are homeless, at risk of homelessness, fleeing or attempting to flee domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or human trafficking, or recently homeless.

“We faced a housing and homelessness crisis well before this pandemic, and the past year has only made it worse. And for people experiencing homelessness, housing insecurity, or fleeing domestic violence, the pandemic has made being unhoused even more challenging than it already was,” Senator Murray said. “So I’m glad we were able to secure this critical relief to help people get safe, secure housing with the aid of public housing authorities in their communities. The American Rescue Plan was just the start of the work we need to do to combat the housing and homelessness crisis, and I’m going to keep pushing to get needed federal support for housing, rent, and homelessness assistance in Washington state.”

The American Rescue Plan passed in March after a year of Senator Murray advocating for increased housing assistance to combat the effects of the pandemic on renters, homeowners, and people experiencing homelessness, and also includes more than $400 million in rental assistance and nearly $100 million for housing and services to support people experiencing homelessness in Washington state.

In the December COVID relief package, Senator Murray helped to secure $507 million for Washington state and $25 billion nationally for states, Tribes, and territories to provide rental and utility assistance, and last year, Senator Murray helped secure over $100 million in Emergency Solutions Grants for Washington state through the CARES Act, which provided a critical lifeline for people and families experiencing or facing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, Senator Murray has already announced more than $100 million in federal awards to combat housing insecurity and invest in public housing infrastructure across Washington state.

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