Housing Programs
(See also Illinois Community Action Development Corporation)
IDHS Homeless Service Provider Technical Assistance
Since 1990, IACAA has delivered technical assistance to providers of homeless services in partnership with the Illinois Department of Human Services, Bureau of Homeless Services and Supportive Housing. A primary activity has been the publication of the monthly newsletter Homeless Headlines and the Homeless Hotline bulletin. These publications bring timely news, expert information, funding information, and peer program experience to homeless service providers and affordable housing developers throughout Illinois.
News items monitor federal and state program and budget developments on issues that have a direct impact on homeless service providers. Training opportunities are also featured frequently. From time to time, a feature will focus on management issues of nonprofit organizations, such as board directors and officers insurance. Readers are also directed.to a variety of reports and data sources related to housing and homeless issues.
Regular monthly Homeless Headlines features include profiles of a range of homeless programs from all parts of Illinois. These have included a health program from Chicago, a mental health program from Decatur and a supportive housing program in Quincy. There has even been a story on a program involving Chicago homeless program participants growing produce in rural northern Illinois and marketing it in the city. Occasionally, noteworthy programs from other states are also featured.
The newsletter's Making the Connection column documents and eplains in detail regulations and procedures for many State and Federal programs that benefit low-income and homeles families. The information is very useful to social service staff who work directly with families and individuals in need, as well as to administrators, and program managers.
The monthly Funding Resources column lists private foundations that fund housing and homeless program activities, advises readers of the foundation's specific interests, and gives other useful information.
A brief directory of government and nonprofit organizations is also included each month.
The Homeless Hotline bulletin is reserved for pressing information that cannot await the publication cycle of Headlines or requires focused attention from homeless service providers. An example is the announcement of HUD's annual homeless SuperNOFA (Notice of Funding Availability).
Current Headlines/Hotline circulation is approximately 1,100. Both publications are also available on IACAA's web site, and by email subscripton. Independent evaluations of the publications have been very positive and help to shape content.
Direct technical assistance to homeless service providers is also available. For example, IACAA has consulted with contractor for a local Continuum of Care organization that was doing an extensive re-evaluation of their Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness. IACAA advised them of many relevant resources, and provided insight into meaningful measures of the extent of homelessness, and indicators of the degree of program success.
In support of these technical assistance activities, IACAA's Housing and Homelessness Specialist also attends Continuum of Care and other meetings, conferences, trainings and events to gather current information, and to develop and maintain a network of contacts among funders and service providers at all levels.
Rental Housing Support Program
A combination of low wages and limited availability of affordable rental housing units requires many families and households throughout the State of Illinois to pay a disproportionate share of their income for basic housing. There are also households in the state that face additional difficulty in finding affordable housing due to disabilities or special needs of family members.
In order to address this pressing need, the Rental Housing Support Program (RHSP) was enacted in 2005. The Rental Housing Support Program promotes permanent housing through the funding of rent subsidies for these 'rent burdened' extremely and severely low-income households. Fewer than half the states in the nation have a rental assistance program and only two other states, Massachusetts and Connecticut, provide long-term rental support.
IACAA signed a three (3) year contract with the Illinois Housing Development Authority in 2008 to administer this program within 16 rural counties of Illinois in Round I of the RHSP. Participating agencies are Project Now in Rock Island, Rockford Human Services, Two Rivers Regional Council of Public Officials in Quincy, and Wabash Area Development, Inc. (WADI), in Enfield. Currently 57 families are being assisted through Round I. In many cases, these IACAA member agencies are also providing services other than housing to the tenant families.
IACAA has also been awarded in Round II (2009) of the RHSP. This partnership will include Rockford Human Services, Shawnee Development Council in Karnak, and Tri-County Opportunities Council in Rock Falls. This award will increase the coverage by 16 counties, for a total of 32 counties in all. Units are not yet rented.
IACAA is applying for Round III funding in the fall of 2009 for an award to be made in the spring of 2010. This is likely to substantially increase the number of counties and families served.
Department of Mental Health - Bridge Subsidy Program
Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) is a program that helps eligible people find a permanent home and also get local mental health services but only if and when they need that help. PSH wants to boost people's power to choose their own living arrangements and get services that are flexible based upon the support they need at any given time.
The Department of Human Services, Division of Mental Health is committed to, as a priority toward systems rebalancing, the development and expansion of Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) for individuals who meet defined criteria of eligibility and who are diagnosed with a serious mental illness. The goal of this initiative is to promote and stabilize consumer Recovery with elective support services in one's leased or owned home that (1) provides safety, (2) ensures comfort and decency and (3) is financially manageable within the resources that the consumer has available. You can view the full DMH Housing Policy in the list of documents below.