SECRETARY CARSON APPROVES NEW USES FOR COMMUNITIES’ CORONAVIRUS RELIEF FUNDS
New flexibilities allow communities to effectively use over 3 billion in HUD relief funds

WASHINGTON - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson today announced new flexibilities states and local government can use in order to best utilize Community Development Block Grant (CDBG-CV) funds appropriated by the CARES Act, as well as other federal funds, to support their communities in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. To date, HUD has provided over $3 billion in CDBG-CV funds nationwide to help communities combat coronavirus and alleviate economic hardship. HUD is also providing flexibility to communities who want to utilize their existing, non-CARES Act federal dollars to support their coronavirus recovery efforts.

“As communities recover from the impacts of the coronavirus outbreak, HUD is providing States and local units of governments with the flexibility they need to effectively target funds to those efforts that need it most,” said Secretary Carson. “In combatting the novel coronavirus, we have to be responsive to challenges as they arise.”

After President Trump signed the CARES Act into law, HUD acted immediately to allocate its first wave of funding - over $3 billion to assist communities and non-profits - to help protect the homeless and Americans with compromised immune systems, as well as assist Tribal communities in their COVID-19 response efforts.

Key new flexibilities available to communities in administering their CDBG-CV funds include:

• States may carry out activities directly or pass funds through to local governments in both rural and urban areas throughout the state. (Some funds must be set aside for rural areas.)
• Economic development rules updated and streamlined so grantees can move quickly to help small businesses, and
• Emergency payments to a provider or landlord on behalf of a family or individual, usually limited to 90 days, may extend for up to six months.

The Notice also contains waivers and alternative requirements to expedite submissions across multiple grant programs so states and local governments can quickly realign existing resources to respond to COVID-19.

For more information on HUD's response to the novel coronavirus pandemic and the actions the Department has taken, please visit HUD.gov/coronavirus. Homelessness service providers and Public Housing Authorities across the Nation have jumped into action to assist those they serve during this unprecedented time. Read more about their stories featured in HUD's Neighbors Helping Neighbors campaign, here.