U.S. Rep. Correa will funnel $35M in federal homeless funding to Orange County

WASHINGTON — Today, Representative Lou Correa (CA-46) announced nearly $35 million in federal tax dollars for over 25 projects from over 10 organizations across Orange County that provide housing assistance and/or supportive services to people experiencing homelessness, as well as costs related to planning and data collection. This funding comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) nearly $3.16 billion in Continuum of Care program awards for over 7,000 projects across the country.

“Orange County is facing a homelessness crisis, and we’ve got to do all we can—at every level of government—to make sure we’re tackling it head-on,” Correa said. “This funding will be transformational, and will build on the millions in federal tax dollars I’ve brought home through the government funding process to address this crisis. These providers work each and every day to support our neighbors facing homelessness, and I’m so proud to see that, today, they’ll gain access to even more of the resources they need to better our community.”

Just this year, Correa announced over $4 million in federal tax dollars to address Orange County’s housing crisis—including $3 million to the Orange County Housing Finance Trust to facilitate the construction of over 136 affordable and permanent supportive units, and $1 million for veterans housing assistance. This funding was part of the nearly $30 million that Correa secured for community projects throughout California’s 46th congressional district in the Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) omnibus appropriations bill, which President Joe Biden signed into law two years ago. Correa worked in lockstep with community leaders to identify priorities for CA-46 constituents, and fought for them during the annual funding process.

“Now, more than ever, we are doing all we can to get people off the street and into permanent homes with access to services. That is why we are making sure the service providers on the frontlines of this crisis have the resources they need,” said HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge. “At HUD, we have served or permanently housed 1.2 million people experiencing homelessness in the last three years alone, building on President Biden’s efforts to keep Americans housed. The historic awards we are announcing today will expand community capacity to assist more people in obtaining the safety and stability of a home, along with the supports they need to achieve their life goals.”

HUD’s Continuum of Care program is the backbone federal program supporting community homelessness response systems across the country, providing grants to nonprofit providers, States, Indian Tribes, and local governments for permanent and short-term housing assistance, supportive services, planning, data, and other costs.

Recipients of funding from this program across Orange County include: American Family Housing, Anaheim Supportive Housing, Inc., County of Orange, Families Forward, Friendship Shelter, Inc., Human Options, Inc., Illumination Foundation, Interval House, Mercy House Living Centers, Orange County Housing Authority, Orange County’s United Way DBA Orange County United Way, Pathways of Hope, and Serving People In Need, Inc. You can view a breakdown of all the Continuums of Care and project awards HERE.

ABOUT LOU:

Congressman Lou Correa is a longtime Orange County resident, with deep local roots. To this day, he lives only three miles from his childhood neighborhood in Anaheim. He is the son of working-class parents whose hard work gave him a chance at success, and has spent his career fighting to protect the American Dream, and ensure anyone can reach the middle class, just as he did. In 2016, Lou was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives to continue his work by representing the community he has spent the past 20 years serving, fighting to give everyone access to the same opportunity he had. Congressman Correa is committed to working across party lines to strengthen the middle class and give everyone a shot at the American Dream by investing in education, healthcare, and our fading infrastructure, and has introduced legislation to protect the legal rights of immigrants, care for veterans, and fight against the wasteful spending of taxpayer money.