[Austin RENT Assistance Program Virtual Press Conference]
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GOOD MORNING AND WELCOME TO THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S VIRTUAL PRESS CONFERENCE TO DISCUSS THE CITY'S RELIEF OF EMERGENCY NEEDS FOR TENANTS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.
ALSO KNOWN AS THE RENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.
MY NAME IS JEFF PATTERSON WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.
AND I'LL BE MODERATING TODAY'S CONFERENCE TODAY.
WE ARE JOINED BY OUR SPEAKERS ROSARY, TRUE LOVE DIRECTOR OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT AND MICHAEL GERBER, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF BOSTON.
IN ADDITION, WE ALSO HAVE NEFERTITI JAGMIN CITY OF BOSTON HOUSING AND PLANNING POLICY MANAGER, AND POLARA SANCHEZ VICE PRESIDENT OF AUSTIN PATHWAYS UP SUBSIDIARY OF THE HO HOUSING AUTHORITY.
TODAY'S POOL REPORTER IS KEVIN CLARK OF KX A N.
THIS PEST PRESS CONFERENCE IS BEING SIMULCAST IN SPANISH ON ATX N THREE AND HIS CLOSED CAPTIONED SERVICES BEING PROVIDED DIRECTOR.
TRUE LOVE WILL OPEN THINGS UP AND PROVIDE A PROGRAM OVERVIEW ALL IN THAT WILL BE MR. GERBER'S REMARKS.
THEN WE'LL TURN TO THE POOL REPORTER FOR FACILITATION OF QUESTIONS FROM THE PRESS.
AT THE END, WE WILL BEGIN WITH A WELCOME BY DIRECTOR.
UH, AGAIN, MY NAME IS ROSIE TRUE LOVE, AND I AM THE DIRECTOR OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.
AND I'M REALLY PLEASED TO BE HERE.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US HERE TODAY FOR THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE RELIEF OF EMERGENCY NEEDS FOR TENANTS PROGRAM.
THIS PROGRAM IS DELIVERED IS DELIVERED IN PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE CITY OF AUSTIN AND THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN, AND WILL PROVIDE A TOTAL OF $17.75 MILLION FROM BOTH FEDERAL AND LOCAL SOURCES OF SUPPORT, UH, TO AUSTIN RENTERS WHO HAVE BEEN FINANCIALLY IMPACTED BY COVID-19 IN THE FORM OF RENTAL ASSISTANCE AND OTHER FORMS OF SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE.
WE DO NOT NEED TO REMIND YOU OF THE SEVERITY OF CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING THIS PANDEMIC CORONAVIRUS IN JURORS, THE ECONOMY STRUGGLES RENTERS ARE INCREASINGLY UNABLE TO PAY THEIR RENT AS WORRIES, MT.
ABOUT BEING EVICTED FROM THEIR HOMES.
HOUSING CONTINUES TO BE A CRITICAL COMPONENT FOR BOTH PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY.
WHEN CONFRONTING THIS PANDEMIC AUSTIN HOUSEHOLDS STRUGGLING TO PAY THEIR RENT IS AN ADDED PRESSURE ON AN ALREADY STRESSED COMMUNITY.
THE GREATEST IMPACT IS FELT IN COMMUNITIES OF COLOR AND OUR FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN.
OUR VETERANS ARE PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES AND THOSE WHO ARE EARNING LESS INCOME OR NO INCOME DURING THIS DIFFICULT TIME.
ACCORDING TO DATA FROM TRAVIS COUNTY, THERE IS A BACKLOG OF EVICTION FILINGS, WHICH HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED LOCALLY THROUGH SEPTEMBER BY MAYOR STEVE ADLER AND TRAVIS COUNTY JUDGE SAM BISCO.
AND THESE ARE LARGELY CONCENTRATED ON THE CITIES EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AREAS IN OUR HISTORICALLY BLACK AND LATIN X COMMUNITIES.
OUR ABILITY TO PRESERVE RENTAL HOUSING FOR IMPACTED POPULATIONS IS CRITICAL TO MAINTAINING THE SOCIAL SAFETY NET FAMILIES WITHOUT HOMES, RISK OVERWHELMING OUR SHELTERS, FLOODING OUR EMERGENCY CARE CENTERS AND OVERBURDENING OUR PUBLIC SERVICES.
WE NEED TO MANAGE AS BEST AS WE CAN WITH THE RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO US THROUGH LOCAL AND FEDERAL SOURCES TO KEEP RENTERS IN THEIR HOMES WHERE THEY CAN BE SAFE AMID THIS ONGOING CRISIS AND MAY THE CITY AND THE CITY OF AUSTIN AND THE HOUSING AUTHORITY PARTNERED ON THE FIRST RENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, WHICH PROVIDED $1.2 MILLION IN PARTIAL RENTAL ASSISTANCE TO APPROXIMATELY 1700 LOW INCOME HOUSEHOLDS.
AND WHILE THAT WAS A REMARKABLE STEP FOR THE CITY, WE RECEIVED MORE THAN 10,000 APPLICATIONS FOR HELP FOR THIS ROUND OF THE RENT PROGRAM.
THE CITY IS COMMITTING TO DISTRIBUTE 12.9 MILLION IN FULL CONTRACT RENTAL ASSISTANCE AND HAS MADE IMPORTANT CHANGES TO THE PROGRAM.
BASED ON FEEDBACK WE HEARD FROM THE COMMUNITY AND FROM OUR AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL, UH, UP TO THREE MONTHS OF PAID RENT WILL BE AVAILABLE TO HOUSEHOLDS WHOSE INCOME IS BETWEEN ZERO AND 30% OF THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME.
AND ONE MONTH OF PAID RENT WILL BE AVAILABLE TO HOUSEHOLDS WHOSE INCOME IS BETWEEN 30 AND 80% OF THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME RENT FUNDS CAN BE APPLIED TOWARDS PAST RENT, EXTENDING BACK TO APRIL, 2020, OR CAN BE APPLIED TO FUTURE RENT DEPENDING ON THE EXPRESSED NEED.
AND IN ADDITION TO DIRECT RENTAL ASSISTANCE, THE REMAINDER OF THE RENT PROGRAM FUNDS WILL PROVIDE ADDITIONAL SERVICES RELATED SUCH AS TENANT STABILIZATION, EVICTION PREVENTION, AND DIRECT COMMUNITY OUTREACH OUTREACH TO OUR COMMUNITIES MOST IN NEED.
OUR GOAL IS TO PROVIDE RENTAL ASSISTANCE TO MORE THAN 2000 HOUSEHOLDS PER MONTH WITH APPROXIMATELY TWO THIRDS OF THESE SELECTED APPLICANTS BEING 30%
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OR BELOW THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME.AND I'M PLEASED TODAY TO BE JOINED BY OUR KEY PARTNER IN DELIVERING THE RENT PROGRAM.
MIKE GERBER WITH THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN, MR. GERBER WILL NOW PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION ON ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS, APPLICATION PROCEDURES, AND TIMELINES, MR. GERBER, THANKS SO MUCH ROSIE AND A BIG THANKS TO EVERYONE THERE AT THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S OFFICE OF NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.
THEY'VE DONE AN EXTRAORDINARY JOB.
I'M PIECING TOGETHER A VERY CHALLENGING PROGRAM AND A CHALLENGING TIME.
UM, AND I REALLY JUST WANT TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO THEM.
I ALSO WANT TO THANK OUR MAYOR AND OUR CITY COUNCIL FOR THEIR LEADERSHIP IN PROVIDING THE NECESSARY RESOURCES TO HELP SO MANY IN OUR COMMUNITY.
OUR NEIGHBORS TRULY IN NEED, AS WELL AS OUR CITY MANAGER, SPENCER CRONK, AND TO OUR ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER AGAINST GONZALES, WHOSE LEADERSHIP IS REALLY INDISPENSABLE IN PULLING ALL OF THESE PROGRAMS TOGETHER.
UM, FOR MANY YEARS, THE HOUSING OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UH, HAS BEEN, UH, HAS WORKED TO PROVIDE HOUSING, STABILITY AND ASSISTANCE, UH, HERE IN OUR, IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND WE'RE PROUD TO JUST SUCH A CHALLENGING TIME BE ABLE TO STEP UP AND DO THAT ONCE AGAIN, IN PARTNERSHIP, UH, WITH NACD, UM, I'D LIKE TO PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT OF INFORMATION REGARDING THE ELIGIBILITY AND THE APPLICATION PROCESS APPLICANTS FOR THE RED PROGRAM MUST LIVE WITHIN AUSTIN'S FULL PURPOSE CITY LIMITS.
THE APPLICANT HOUSEHOLD INCOME MUST BE 80% OR LESS OF THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME APPLICANTS HAVE TO CURRENTLY BE ON A LEASE OR IN A CONTRACTUALLY BOUND RENTAL RELATIONSHIP APPLICANTS CANNOT BE CURRENTLY RECEIVING, UH, OTHER FORMS OF FEDERAL, UH, FEDERAL RENTAL ASSISTANCE, SUCH AS THE SECTION EIGHT VOUCHER.
UH, APPLICANTS MAY NOT BE A FULL TIME STUDENT WHOSE RENT IS PAID BY SOMEONE ELSE.
UM, AND FINALLY APPLICANTS MUST PROVIDE DOCUMENTATION SHOWING THAT COVID-19 HAS IMPACTED THEM AS AFFECTED THEM FINANCIALLY.
AND THAT WILL BE DONE THROUGH PAY STUBS, UNEMPLOYMENT NOTICES, NOTICE OF RENT DUE, UH, OR OTHER TYPES OF VERIFYING NOTICES.
AGAIN, THIS IS A PROGRAM INTENDED FOR THOSE WHO'VE BEEN IMPACTED BY THE RAVAGING EFFECTS OF COVID-19 ON OUR COMMUNITY, STARTING ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 19TH.
THAT'S JUST TWO DAYS FROM NOW AT 8:00 AM CENTRAL STANDARD TIME ELIGIBLE RENTERS FOR THIS PROGRAM MAY APPLY ONLINE AT AUSTIN, TEXAS.GOV, BACKSLASH RENT AGAIN, THAT'S AUSTIN, TEXAS.GOV X SLASH RENT, R E N T.
THIS WEBPAGE CONTAINS A WEALTH OF INFORMATION AND WILL DIRECTLY LINK FOLKS TO THE RENT APPLICATION PORTAL APPLICATIONS WILL REMAIN OPEN THROUGH JANUARY OF 2021, OR UNTIL ALL THE FUNDS HAVE BEEN DEPLETED APPLICATIONS CAN BE SUBMITTED 24 HOURS A DAY, SEVEN DAYS A WEEK FROM ANY SMARTPHONE, SMARTPHONE, MOBILE DEVICE OR COMPUTER WITH INTERNET ACCESS.
SO THERE'S NOT A RUSH TO APPLY IN THE FIRST 15 MINUTES OF THE PROGRAM, THERE'S TIME TO APPLY.
AND WE WANT PEOPLE TO DO THAT SAFELY BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THERE'S AN IMMENSE AMOUNT OF, OF NEED THE APPLICATION WILL BE AVAILABLE IN ENGLISH, SPANISH, ARABIC, KOREAN SIMPLIFIED, CHINESE, TRADITIONAL CHINESE, UH, ME AND MAR OR BURMESE, URDU, AND VIETNAMESE, THE LANGUAGES THAT ARE MOST PROMINENTLY SPOKEN HERE IN OUR VERY DIVERSE CITY THAT WE ALL LOVE.
I'M NOW GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO POLARA SANCHEZ.
WHO'S OUR VICE PRESIDENT HERE AT HAKA FOR AUSTIN PATHWAYS, WHICH IS A SUBSIDIARY OF OUR AGENCY.
WHO'S GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE APPLICATION PROCESS IN MORE DEPTH AND APPLICATION ASSISTANCE THAT'S AVAILABLE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
THANK YOU MR. GERBER, THOSE WHO NEED ASSISTANCE COMPLETING AN APPLICATION OR A LANGUAGE TRANSLATION OR A SPECIFIC COMMUNICATION FORMAT MAY CALL (512) 488-1397 FROM 8:00 AM TO 6:00 PM CENTRAL STANDARD TIME.
MONDAY THROUGH INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY NEED HEARING OR SPEECH ACCESSIBILITY MAY CALL THE TEXAS RELAY SERVICE BY DIALING SEVEN ONE ONE FOR ASSISTANCE.
ONCE AN ELIGIBLE APPLICATION IS SUBMITTED, IT'S ENTERED INTO AN APPLICATION POOL, WHICH WILL UNDERGO A MONTHLY RANDOM SELECTION PROCESS.
AUGUST 26, ELIGIBILITY SPECIALIST WILL THEN FURTHER REVIEW THE APPLICATION AND THE LANDLORD WILL BE CONTACTED FOR CONFIRMATION.
ONCE AN APPLICATION IS FULLY APPROVED, THE RENT PAYMENT WILL BE ISSUED DIRECTLY TO THE LANDLORD ON BEHALF OF THE TENANT IN THE FULL AMOUNT OF THE CONTRACT RENT APPLICATIONS NOT SELECTED IN THE FIRST RANDOM SELECTION PROCESS, WE REMAIN ACTIVE FOR SUBSEQUENT RANDOM SELECTIONS, WHICH ARE HELD MONTHLY.
THEREFORE ONLY ONE APPLICATION NEEDS TO BE SUBMITTED FOR HOUSEHOLD.
ALL APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED DURING THE OPEN APPLICATION PERIOD, HAVE AN EQUAL CHANCE OF BEING RANDOMLY SELECTED.
MEANING THERE IS NO NEED TO RUSH TO SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATIONS WHEN THEY OPEN AT 8:00 AM
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ON WEDNESDAY, ROSIE.THANK YOU MS. SANCHEZ, BUT THAT INFORMATION, LASTLY, I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE KNOW WE CANNOT CONDUCT THIS REC PROGRAM ALONE.
WE ANNOUNCED COMMUNITY OUTREACH GRANTS OR PARTNERSHIPS TO SUPPORT TENANT STABILIZATION, EVICTION PREVENTION, AND OUTREACH TO VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES AFFECTED BY COVID-19.
I'M GOING TO ASK NEFERTITI JACKMAN, WHO IS MANAGING THESE GRANTS FOR NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, TO GIVE A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THESE MINI GRANT OPPORTUNITIES AS JACQUELINE.
UM, A KEY PART OF THE RENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM IS COLLABORATION WITH OUR MISSION DRIVEN ORGANIZATIONS THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF BOSTON.
TO HELP US GET THE WORD OUT TO, UH, SUPPORT APPLICANTS.
AS ROSIE MENTIONED LAST WEEK, THE CITY ANNOUNCED $400,000, UH, A GRANT OPPORTUNITY TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS WHO CAN REACH OUT DIRECTLY TO THE FOCUS POPULATION THROUGH PHONE CALLS, VIDEO CHATS, SOCIAL MEDIA ENGAGEMENT, AS WELL AS OTHER SERVICES THAT MIGHT INCLUDE HELPING HOUSEHOLDS, COMPLETE APPLICATIONS BY HELPING THEM TO GATHER THE APPROPRIATE DOCUMENTS, UPLOADING THOSE DOCUMENTS, SETTING UP EMAILS AND PUTTING OUT FLYERS AND DOOR HANGERS APPLICATIONS ARE OPEN TO SMALL BUSINESSES AND COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATIONS, AND THEY CAN APPLY FOR THESE GRANTS, WHICH RANGE FROM 1000 TO $50,000 BEFORE THE 4:00 PM CENTRAL STANDARD TIME DEADLINE ON TUESDAY, AUGUST THE 25TH, WE ARE GLAD TO PROVIDE THE STREAMLINED ONLINE APPLICATION PROCESS, A PROCESS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S EQUITY OFFICE.
MORE INFORMATION ON THESE GRANTS CAN BE FOUND ON
THAT'S DATED AUGUST 11TH, ANNOUNCING THE COMMUNITY OUTREACH GRANTS.
UH, WE'LL NOW TURN IT OVER TO JEFF, OUR MODERATOR TO FACILITATE, UH, QUESTIONS FROM THE PRESS.
UM, I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER NOW TO, UH, KEVIN CLARK FROM
THANK YOU ALL FOR ANSWERING A FEW QUESTIONS TODAY.
UM, THIS FIRST QUESTION COMES FROM KUT AND IT'S THE CITY OF AUSTIN ANNOUNCED THE SECOND ROUND, THE SECOND ROUND OF RENT ASSISTANCE IN LATE JULY.
WHY DID IT TAKE NEARLY A MONTH TO OPEN APPLICATIONS? I CAN TAKE THAT.
WE'VE BEEN SPENDING A GREAT AMOUNT OF TIME WORKING WITH HAKA AND WORKING TO MAKE SOME SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE FIRST ROUND OF, OF RENT THAT WE PROVIDED, UH, IN, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE NEEDS THAT WERE, THAT WE WERE SEEING WITH THE APPLICATIONS THAT CAME THROUGH ON THE FIRST ROUND AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH SOME DIRECTION THAT WE RECEIVED FROM OUR CITY COUNCIL.
AND SO IT TOOK US A LITTLE BIT OF TIME TO GET, UM, TO GET THE NEW PROGRAM UP AND TO MAKE SURE THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE A STABLE PLATFORM FOR AUSTIN TO BE ABLE TO APPLY INTO THIS NEXT QUESTION IS FROM COOPERATIVE AND IT'S ARE PEOPLE LIVING IN EXTENDED STAY AND SHORT TERM RENTAL HOUSING LIKE HOMETOWN OR HOMETOWN STUDIOS EXTENDED STAY AMERICA.
ARE THEY ELIGIBLE FOR RENT FUNDS? YES.
UM, POLARA DO YOU WANT TO, DO YOU WANT TO TAKE THAT? SORRY.
UM, YES, AS LONG AS THEY HAVE A LEASE, UM, AND A TRADITIONAL APARTMENT COMPLEX OR RENTAL PRICE YES.
AT AN EXTENDED STAY, THEY CAN SUBMIT AN INVOICE OR, UM, A RECEIPT SHOWING THAT THEY'VE BEEN PAID FOR THEIR MONTHLY STAY THERE.
AND THAT DOES ONE OF THE CHANGES THAT WE MADE TO, UH, TO RENT BETWEEN THE FIRST ITERATION OF THE PROGRAM AND NOW TO BE ABLE TO REACH MORE PEOPLE IN NEED.
THIS NEXT QUESTION COMES FROM US HERE AT DIXON.
AND, UM, TO WHAT EXTENT, AND IF YOU COULD QUANTIFY THIS IF POSSIBLE, BUT TO WHAT EXTENT ARE WE SEEING UNLAWFUL EVICTIONS HAPPENING IN AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY, OR UNLAWFUL EVICTION FILINGS HAPPENING HERE, EVEN WITH THE LOCAL MORATORIUM IN PLACE, NEVER TD, DO YOU THINK YOU COULD SPEAK TO THAT? I DON'T HAVE ANY DATA IN FRONT OF ME, BUT YOU MIGHT RIGHT NOW, ACTUALLY WE DON'T HAVE ANY DATA.
UH, WE HAVE ONLY RECEIVED, UM, ANECDOTAL STORIES FROM, UH, PEOPLE WORKING IN THIS SPACE ABOUT PEOPLE BEING INFORMALLY EVICTED, BUT THERE ARE.
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AWARE OF THESE, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATIONS, UH, WHO, WHEN THEY'RE MADE AWARE, THEY ARE ABLE TO HELP TO FACILITATE ARRANGEMENTS AND REACH OUT TO LANDLORDS AND ALSO SORT OF PROVIDE INFORMATION TO LANDLORDS ABOUT THE LAWS THAT ARE IN PLACE RIGHT NOW AND THE, THE COURT ORDINANCES.SO, UH, BUT IN TERMS OF FORMAL EVICTIONS, THAT IS NOT HAPPENING RIGHT NOW, UM, AS A RESULT OF FAILURE TO PAY RENT, UM, CELL BOOK WE'LL HAVE ANY DATA ON INFORMAL EVICTIONS, ROSIE, IF I COULD JUST CHIME IN ON THAT AT THE HOUSING AUTHORITY, UM, YOU KNOW, WE OBVIOUSLY OPERATE, UH, UNITS THAT, YOU KNOW, WERE FORMERLY KNOWN AS PUBLIC HOUSING.
THEY'RE NOW CALLED PROJECT BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE HOUSING.
WE ALSO OPERATE A LARGE NUMBER OF UNITS THROUGH OUR AUSTIN AFFORDABLE HOUSING CORPORATION SUBSIDIARY.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK IS A HALLMARK OF, OF THOSE TWO PROGRAMS IS THAT WE ARE WORKING AGGRESSIVELY WITH RESIDENTS WHO ARE IN NEED AND WE'RE STRUGGLING TO PAY THEIR PORTION OF THE RENT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE UNDERSTAND, UH, YOU KNOW, WHAT THEIR SITUATION CURRENTLY IS.
AND TO REALLY WORK WITH FOLKS.
AND THIS TIME OF NEED LANDLORDS ARE REALLY CALLED UPON TO WORK WITH FOLKS.
AND WE'RE SEEING THAT IN OUR SECTION EIGHT PROGRAM AS WELL, WHERE WE, YOU KNOW, SUPPORT AND ASSIST NEARLY 6,000 FAMILIES OUT ON AUSTIN'S OPEN RENTAL MARKET.
WE'VE HAD A GREAT PARTNERSHIP WITH THE AUSTIN APARTMENT ASSOCIATION, WITH THE AUSTIN TENANTS COUNCIL THREE THROUGH GRAND LEGAL AID AND OTHER RESOURCES TO HELP PREVENT, UM, EVICTION.
AND FRANKLY, TO MAKE SURE THAT LANDLORDS, UH, UH, KNOW HOW TO DO THE RIGHT THING, CAUSE IT'S, UH, IT'S, IT'S A CHALLENGING TIME ALL AROUND.
UH, BUT WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR NEIGHBORS IN NEED, I HAVE THE RESOURCES TO PREVENT UNLAWFUL EVICTIONS.
WE WANT TO KEEP PEOPLE HOUSED.
THAT'S THE KEY TO JUST ABOUT EVERY OTHER, UM, UH, SERVICE AND, AND EVERY OTHER, UH, BEING ABLE TO ACCESS, UH, YOU KNOW, RESOURCES, THIS COMMUNITY, UH, THAT WILL BE SO CRITICAL POST PANDEMIC.
AND THAT IS ONE OF THE THINGS, AGAIN, AS WE TALK ABOUT CHANGES THAT HAPPEN TO THE PROGRAM BETWEEN THE FIRST INCEPTION, AND NOW WE HAVE ADDED A ROBUST, UH, TENANT STABILIZATION COMPONENT TO THIS, TO, TO THE RENT PROGRAM.
AND SO WE WILL BE ABLE TO CONNECT PEOPLE IF THEY INDICATE THAT THEY NEED ASSISTANCE WITH EVICTION PREVENTION OR, OR, UM, LANDLORD MITIGATION OR TENANT COUNSELING, WE CAN, WE CAN FACILITATE DIRECTLY, UH, LINKING THEM WITH PROVIDERS TO HELP PROVIDE THAT ASSISTANCE.
CIRCLING BACK AROUND TO, UM, A QUESTION FROM KUT AGAIN, AND IT'S, UM, WHEN EXACTLY, AND BELIEVE WE TOUCHED ON THIS A LITTLE BIT, BUT WHEN EXACTLY WILL THE FIRST RENT PAYMENTS BE MADE, AS FAR AS THE SECOND PROCESS GOES AND LANDLORDS DIRECTLY, YES.
WE ESTIMATE THAT THE FIRST SELECTION WILL OCCUR ON AUGUST 26 AND WITHIN A WEEK FROM THERE, PAYMENTS SHOULD START FLOWING DIRECTLY TO THE LANDLORDS.
AND HOPEFULLY EVERY WEEK THEREAFTER WE'LL BE MAKING PAYMENTS, UM, TO LARGE NUMBER OF, OF LANDLORDS WEEKLY.
UM, WE ESTIMATE ABOUT 10,000 MONTHS OF RENT WILL BE PAID.
SO, UH, WE HOPE TO BE PROCESSING A LARGE NUMBERS OF PAYMENTS EVERY WEEK.
ALRIGHT, THIS QUESTION IS FROM COOPERATIVE AGAIN, AND IT'S ARE PEOPLE WHO PAY RENT, BUT NOT ON FORMAL LEASES ELIGIBLE FOR RENT FUNDS.
IF SO, WHAT DOCUMENTATION DO THEY NEED? WHAT SPECIFIC DOCUMENTATION DO THEY NEED TO GENERATE TO PROVE THEIR RENT AMOUNTS? AND I'LL ADD BECAUSE THERE WAS SOME CONCERN ABOUT THIS LAST TIME.
DO PEOPLE NEED TO PROVIDE A SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER? THOSE ARE GREAT QUESTIONS.
A SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER IS NOT REQUIRED.
WE ARE ASKING FOR A UNIQUE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER JUST TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE NOT DUPLICATING BENEFITS.
UM, BUT, UM, ALL APPLICATIONS WILL BE TREATED THE SAME, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THERE'S A SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER OR NOT.
UM, AS FAR AS AN INFORMAL LEASE, WE WOULD NEED SOMETHING THAT SHOWS A FORMAL CONTRACTUAL RELATIONSHIP, UH, WITH A RENTAL PROVIDER.
SO IF THERE IS SOME SORT OF A CONTRACT IN PLACE, EVEN IF IT'S NOT A LEASE WITH A MULTIFAMILY PROPERTY, UM, WE CAN USE THAT.
UM, ANOTHER QUESTION FROM US HERE AT KICKS AND, UM, I KNOW LAST TIME FROM SOME OF THE DATA WE SAW THAT VETERANS WHO RECEIVED PAYMENTS, I BELIEVE IT WAS ABOUT 2.8% OF THOSE WHO RECEIVED THEM.
AND THEN THOSE WITH DISABILITIES WAS ABOUT 6%.
UM, CAN YOU PLEASE EXPLAIN SPECIFICALLY HOW THIS SECOND ROUND OF RENTAL ASSISTANCE WILL BE TAILORED TO BETTER SERVE VULNERABLE TARGETED POPULATIONS, ESPECIALLY IF THE PROCESS IS AT RANDOM THE SELECTIONS.
SO I THINK WE'RE GOING TO COVER THAT
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LARGELY THROUGH THE COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND THE MINI GRANTS THAT MS. JACKMAN RELAYED INFORMATION ABOUT.I'M GOING TO ASK MS. JACKMAN TO RESPOND TO THAT QUESTION.
UM, THE FIRST RENT PROGRAM, WE HAD ZERO MARKETING DOLLARS.
I MEAN, THAT WAS LAUNCHED RATHER RAPIDLY.
UH, THE SECOND ROUND THIS ROUND, WE DO HAVE A VERY STRATEGIC, UH, MARKETING AND OUTREACH PLAN, BOTH IN ADDITION TO THE MINI GRANTS, WHICH WE CERTAINLY HOPE TO REACH IN A PART OF OUR FOCUS POPULATION INCLUDES VETERANS.
UM, SO THAT'S WHAT THAT $400,000 OF THOSE GRANTS ARE FOR TO REALLY IDENTIFY ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE A CONNECTION HAVE DEMONSTRATED SUCCESS WITH, UM, THE FOCUS POPULATION, WHICH INCLUDES VETERANS.
AND THEN ALSO, UH, THE MARKETING DOLLARS THAT WE HAVE ALLOCATED AS A DEPARTMENT IS, UH, SPECIFICALLY TARGETING, UH, VETERANS AND OTHER VULNERABLE POPULATIONS.
SO I THINK THE TEAM HAS DONE A GREAT JOB DESIGNING A VERY FOCUSED AND STRATEGIC MARKETING OUTREACH PLAN.
AND THEN POLARA, I THINK YOU WANTED TO ADD ALSO, WE'RE GOING TO ENSURE THAT EVERY RANDOM SELECTION DRAWN INCLUDES A 66% OF THAT DRAW WILL BE FAMILIES WHO HAVE 30% AND BELOW OF THE MFI IN INCOME.
UM, SO WE WILL BE PULLING FROM TWO DIFFERENT POOLS JUST TO ENSURE THAT THAT HAPPENS.
UM, EVERYBODY THAT'S 30% AND BELOW FULL 66%, IF IT'S A THOUSAND APPLICATIONS THAT WE'RE GOING TO SCREEN THAT WEEK AND SEVEN, ABOUT 700 WILL BE 30% AND BELOW.
AND THE REMAINING WILL BE BETWEEN 30 AND 80%.
SO IF I CAN JUST, UH, FOLLOW UP, THERE WAS ANOTHER QUESTION IT SOUNDS LIKE, ESPECIALLY WITH VETERANS AND THOSE WITH DISABILITIES, THOSE GROUPS GETTING ASSISTANCE HINGES ON THE MARKETING AND THE OUTREACH THAT WILL BE MADE TO, TO REACH THEM SO THEY CAN APPLY.
WELL, THE GOOD THING IS THAT, UM, LAST WEEK WE HAD TWO WEBINARS FOR COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS THAT WE HOPE WILL REACH OUT TO THE POPULATIONS THAT WERE HARD TO SERVE.
AND WE HAD, UM, OVER 150 COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS PARTICIPATE IN THOSE.
A LOT OF THEM ARE COMMITTING TO ASSIST THEIR COMMUNITY WITH THE APPLICATION.
AND, UM, I THINK THE VA HAD ONE OF THE LARGEST NUMBER OF REPRESENTATIVES AT, AT THE WEBINARS.
I THINK THEY HAD ABOUT SIX OR MORE PEOPLE ATTEND THOSE, UH, TO BE ABLE TO GET ALL THE INFORMATION SO THEY CAN TRY AND ASSIST THEIR, THEIR VETERAN COMMUNITY ROSIE, IF I COULD JUST CHIME IN, IN RESPONSE TO KEVIN'S QUESTION.
UM, SO WITH, WITH THE, WITH THE PILOT PROGRAM FOR RENT THAT WE DID BACK IN MAY AND JUNE, IT WAS A FAIRLY QUICK TURNAROUND.
WE KNEW THE NEED IN THE COMMUNITY NACD AND, AND HACA, WE'RE WORKING HARD TO MOVE OURS AS QUICKLY AS WE COULD.
WE USE OUR EXISTING, UH, PARTNERSHIP NETWORK THAT BOTH OR THAT BOTH AGENCIES HAVE.
UM, BUT IT WAS A VERY, VERY FAST TURNAROUND.
SO THE OPPORTUNITY FOR THIS TO, TO SEEP INTO THE COMMUNITY AND TO REALLY BE KNOWN AS WIDELY AS WE MIGHT'VE WISHED, UM, WOULD HAVE TAKEN JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME.
THIS PROGRAM HAS A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME ASSOCIATED WITH IT.
AND FRANKLY, WE'VE BEEN DOING SOME SPADE WORK WITH THOSE NEIGHBORS, WITH THOSE COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS, WITH THOSE NONPROFITS AND OTHER GOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES.
SO MUCH OF THAT TOOK PLACE, UH, LAST WEEK.
AND WE'RE SO EXCITED TO HAVE LITERALLY, YOU KNOW, DOZENS OF AGENCIES THAT HAVE PARTICIPATED IN THOSE, IN THOSE WORKSHOPS AND ARE GOING TO BE STEPPING UP.
I KNOW TO HELP WITH THIS PROGRAM OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS.
SO WE'RE LOOKING FOR, IT'LL BE NOT JUST A MUCH MORE ROBUST MARKETING, BUT ALSO FOLKS WHO ARE GOING TO HAVE REAL, UM, UH, ABILITY TO HELP, UH, FOLKS, UH, IN HISTORICALLY UNDER SERVED POPULATIONS, COMPLETE THE APPLICATIONS, UH, WORK THROUGH THE PROCESS, UPLOAD THE INFORMATION THAT NEEDS TO BE UPLOADED, UH, INLAND, INLAND ADDITIONAL FORMS OF SUPPORT.
UM, SO THERE'LL BE A NUMBER OF ORGANIZATIONS DOING THAT.
SOME OF WHICH WILL BE SUPPORTED OF COURSE, BY THE COMMUNITY GRANTS THAT, THAT NEVER TV SPOKE OF THAT WILL BE SO CRITICAL TO MAINTAINING THE CAPACITY OF SOME ORGANIZATIONS IN OUR, IN OUR COMMUNITY WITH TO BE ABLE TO HELP THEM PROVIDE THAT TYPE OF, OF, OF MARKETING AND IN GENERAL APPLICATION ASSISTANCE.
BUT THIS IS, I THINK YOU'RE GONNA BE SEEING BECAUSE OF THE SCOPE OF THIS PROGRAM AND THE LONGEVITY OF THIS PROGRAM, A MUCH MORE ROBUST, UM, UH, MARKETING AND, AND, AND ENGAGEMENT PROCESS TO HELP THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN THIS COMMUNITY, UH, WHO NEED HELP BE AWARE OF THE PROGRAM AND TO HAVE THEM APPLY.
WE HAVE, UH, AS OF THIS TIME ABOUT THREE QUESTIONS
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LEFT.SO, UM, THIS ONE, AGAIN FROM KUT, UM, ARE PEOPLE WHO RECEIVED RENT ASSISTANCE FROM THE FIRST ROUND ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE RENT ASSISTANCE THIS TIME? YES, THEY ARE.
UM, THIS ONE FROM US, AGAIN, KICK SAN IN THE INITIAL ROUND OF RENTAL ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS AROUND 1,680 PEOPLE WERE HELPED.
UM, BUT IT WASN'T ENOUGH TO HELP THOUSANDS OF OTHERS WHO WERE UNABLE TO RECEIVE DIRECT ASSISTANCE, UM, WHO, OR TO WHAT EXTENT WILL THOSE PEOPLE RECEIVE PRIORITY IN THIS ROUND, OR WILL IT BE COMPLETELY RANDOM? IT WILL BE COMPLETELY RANDOM.
AND WE WILL BE ASKING THOSE FOLKS TO APPLY AGAIN, UM, IF THEY WERE NOT SELECTED OR IF THEY ARE STILL IN NEED OF ASSISTANCE, UH, FROM THE FIRST ROUND, UM, THEY WILL BE PART OF THE RANDOM PROCESS LIKE EVERYONE ELSE.
AND LASTLY, UM, THIS IS FROM COOPERATIVE LEO, THE 80% MFI THRESHOLD IS THAT FIGURE DETERMINED PER TAX HOUSEHOLD OR PER DOMESTIC HOUSEHOLD THAT IS DO ROOMMATE BEACH, CONSIDER THEIR NON TAX HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS INCOMES.
I'M GOING TO ASK YOU TO TAKE THAT.
UM, IT IS, IT IS BASED ON THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE LIVING IN THE HOUSEHOLD.
AND THAT MEANS THAT ALL OF THE INCOME THAT HOUSEHOLD NEEDS TO BE COUNTED.
IF YOU HAVE PEOPLE LIVING WITH YOU AND THEY HAVE INCOME, YOU DO HAVE TO COUNT THEIR INCOME.
IF IT'S A STUDENT LANDLORD SITUATION WHERE YOU HAVE FIVE PEOPLE LIVING IN ONE APARTMENT, BUT EACH ONE HAS THEIR OWN LEASE, THEN WE CAN ASSIST THE ONE PERSON WITH ONE LEASE.
UM, BUT, UM, AS LONG AS THE LEASE INCLUDES A GROUP OF PEOPLE, THEN IT'S CONSIDERED, UM, WE'LL CONSIDER THE INCOME OF EVERYBODY IN THE HOUSEHOLD.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SERVING AS FULL REPORTER TODAY.
I WANT TO THANK ALL OUR PARTICIPANTS FOR COMING ON AND, AND PROVIDING, UM, TERRIFIC ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS.
I'LL REMIND THE REPORTERS THAT IF YOU DO HAVE QUESTIONS LATER, AFTER WE'VE FINISHED TODAY, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO ME EITHER BY EMAIL OR PHONE, AND THEN WE'LL GET BACK WHEN I ANSWER TO YOU AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.
THANK YOU AGAIN, EVERYONE FOR PARTICIPATING.
AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO TALKING TO YOU CAN SAY, THANK YOU.