Saturday, May 11, 2024

Senator Murray Announces Nearly $129 Million to Expand Affordable Housing, Support People Experiencing Homelessness in WA State

Senator Murray Announces Nearly $129 Million to Expand Affordable Housing, Support People Experiencing Homelessness in WA State

ICYMI: As Appropriations Chair, Murray Secures Millions for WA Housing Priorities in Funding Package

Senator Murray: “Whether you live in Seattle or Spokane—working families shouldn’t have to put more than half of their income toward their rent or mortgage, so I’ll keep fighting for the kind of federal investment we need to dramatically expand the supply of affordable housing and bring down costs.”

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced nearly $129 million in federal funding for Washington state from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to build more affordable housing, support renters and homeowners, address homelessness, and modernize and expand public housing across Washington state. The programs range from Community Development Block Grants and the HOME Investment Partnerships Program to build more affordable housing, to a program that connects people living with HIV/AIDS to housing and support, to grants for homeless shelters and social service and homeless prevention programs. While House Republicans proposed cuts to federal housing programs, as Senate Appropriations Chair, Senator Murray stood firm to protect federal housing investments in Fiscal Year 2024 to ensure that Congress would continue these critical investments.

“I’m working every way I can to get funding like this out to Washington state where it can really make a difference—building more housing, repairing existing housing stock, and providing supportive services to people experiencing homelessness,” said Senator Murray. “I fought to protect critical investments in federal housing programs because every American deserves a roof over their head and a place to call home. Whether you live in Seattle or Spokane—working families shouldn’t have to put more than half of their income toward their rent or mortgage, so I’ll keep fighting for the kind of federal investment we need to dramatically expand the supply of affordable housing and bring down costs.”

The $128,893,048 in HUD fundingMurray announced for Washington state includes:

  • $57,215,544 for Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) which provide annual grants on a formula basis to states, cities, and counties to develop stronger, more resilient communities by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment, and by expanding economic opportunities, principally for low- and moderate-income people. The total amount of CDBG grants broken down for Washington state are as follows:
    • $13,105,608 for the State of Washington
    • $106,279 for the City of Anacortes
    • $619,474 for the City of Auburn
    • $865,525 for the City of Bellevue  
    • $797,349 for the City of Bellingham
    • $378,304 for the City of Bremerton
    • $781,738 for the City of Everett  
    • $813,502 for the City of Federal Way
    • $606,565 for the City of Kennewick
    • $1,065,644 for Kent City
    • $533,581 for the City of Lakewood
    • $277,863 for the City of Longview
    • $389,418 for the City of Marysville
    • $360,931 for the City of Mount Vernon
    • $347,049 for the City of Olympia
    • $677,540 for the City of Pasco
    • $294,843 for the City of Richland
    • $9,054,023 for the City of Seattle
    • $3,046,666 for the City of Spokane
    • $2,358,374 for the City of Tacoma
    • $1,438,547 for the City of Vancouver
    • $390,580 for the City of Walla Walla
    • $308,346 for the City of Wenatchee
    • $1,013,068 for the City of Yakima
    • $1,567,719 for Clark County
    • $5,646,763 for King County
    • $994,350 for Kitsap County
    • $3,150,339 for Pierce County
    • $3,272,313 for Snohomish County
    • $1,723,924 for Spokane County
    • $1,229,319 for Thurston County
  • $24,309,900 for the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, which is the largest federal block grant to state and local governments designed exclusively to create affordable housing for low-income households. HOME funds a wide range of activities including building, buying, and/or rehabilitating affordable housing for rent or homeownership or providing direct rental assistance to low-income people. The total amount of HOME grants broken down for Washington state are as follows:
    • $6,017,274 for the State of Washington
    • $528,736 for the City of Bellingham
    • $300,229 for the City of Longview
    • $652,569 for the City of Richland
    • $2,869,685 for the City of Seattle
    • $1,161,022 for the City of Spokane
    • $1,084,060 for the City of Tacoma
    • $717,517 for the City of Vancouver
    • $458,940 for the City of Yakima
    • $527,824 for Clark County
    • $3,464,904 for King County
    • $652,637 for Kitsap County
    • $1,247,015 for Pierce County
    • $1,813,904 for Snohomish County
    • $820,355 for Spokane County
    • $757,699 for Thurston County
    • $421,427 for Yakima County
    • $814,102 for Skagit County
  • $5,430,503 for the Housing Opportunities for Persons With HIV/AIDS (HOPWA) program which provides stable and permanent housing assistance and supportive services to low-income people living with HIV. The total amount of HOPWA grants broken down for Washington state are as follows:
    • $1,612,571 for the State of Washington
    • $3,817,932 for the City of Seattle
  • $5,031,257 for Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) which provide funds for homeless shelters, assists in the operation of local shelters, and funds related social service and homeless prevention programs. Recipients enable people to quickly regain stability in permanent housing after experiencing a housing crisis and/or homelessness. ESG funds may be used for street outreach, emergency shelter, homelessness prevention, and rapid re-housing assistance. The total amount of ESG grants broken down for Washington state are as follows:
    • $2,711,119 for the State of Washington
    • $833,790 for the City of Seattle
    • $274,772 for the City of Spokane
    • $210,394 for the City of Tacoma
    • $295,182 for King County
    • $275,328 for Pierce County
    • $284,101 for Snohomish County
    • $146,571 for Spokane County
  • $4,182,091 for the Housing Trust Fund which is an affordable housing production program that complements existing Federal, state and local efforts to increase and preserve the supply of decent, safe, and sanitary affordable housing for extremely low- and very low-income households, including families experiencing homelessness. State affordable housing recipients will use these funds for the eligible activities including real property acquisition, site improvements and development hard costs, related soft costs, demolition, financing costs, relocation assistance, and operating cost assistance for rental housing.
  • $32,723,753 for Public Housing Repair funds to support 21 PHAs in Washington state. The funding, from HUD’s Capital Fund Program, will support PHAs as they work to build, renovate, and/or modernize the public housing in their communities. Housing authorities can use the funding to complete large-scale improvements such as replacing roofs or making energy-efficient upgrades to heating systems and installing water conservation measures. The 21 PHAs in Washington state receiving funding are:
    • $443,281 for the Housing Authority for the City of Anacortes
    • $474,274 for the Housing Authority of Asotin County
    • $1,298,493 for the Housing Authority for the City of Bellingham
    • $530,488 for the Housing Authority of the City of Bremerton
    • $852,814 for the Housing Authority of the City of Everett
    • $790,551 for the Housing Authority of Grant County
    • $303,815 for the Housing Authority of Island County
    • $375,249 for the Housing Authority for the City of Kelso
    • $621,241 for the Housing Authority for the City of Kennewick
    • $6,678,990 for the Housing Authority of King County
    • $498,399 for the Kitsap County Consolidated Housing Authority
    • $214,290 for the Housing Authority for the City of Othello
    • $879,476 for the Housing Authority for the City of Pasco and Franklin County
    • $403,493 for the Housing Authority of Pierce County
    • $109,219 for the Housing Authorityfor the City of Renton
    • $16,757,766 for the Seattle Housing Authority
    • $315,215 for the Housing Authority for the City of Sedro Woolley
    • $461,116 for the Housing Authority of Sunnyside
    • $16,650 for the Housing Authority for the City of Tacoma
    • $438,431 for the Housing Authority for the City of Vancouver
    • $260,502 for the Housing Authority of Whatcom County

Senator Murray has consistently worked to address Washington state’s housing crisis and has secured major federal investments to help families keep a roof over their heads. Throughout the pandemic, Senator Murray—then Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) Committee—played a major role in writing federal COVID-19 relief legislation that secured major support for people facing housing insecurity, championing sizable investments in rental assistance and other programs that collectively resulted in the largest eviction prevention effort in American history. At the beginning of this Congress, Senator Murray called on President Biden to utilize a “whole of government” approach to addressing our nation’s housing needs. In the government funding bill Murray negotiated and passed as Appropriations Chair, Murray secured billions for HUD as well as millions of dollars in Congressionally Directed Spending for affordable housing projects throughout Washington state.  

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