Department of Housing and Urban Development

Community Development Block Grant
Columbia is slated to receive $342,783 in formula allocations through the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG). These funds must be used for activities to create suitable living environments, provide decent affordable housing, and create economic opportunities, primarily for persons of low and moderate income. Therefore, the Community Development Department has indicated it will use these funds towards affordable housing programs that are implementation ready but have gone unfunded until now. Community Development is also researching and pursuing Weatherization Assistance stimulus dollars through the State Energy Office. A unique opportunity may exist to possibly leverage CDBG funds with weatherization funds to create the most positive, far reaching impact possible for both Columbia residents and the local economy at large.

Homeless Prevention Fund
Columbia is slated to receive $524,731 in formula allocations through the Homeless Prevention Fund. These funds are to provide financial assistance and services to prevent individuals and families from becoming homeless and help those who are experiencing homelessness to be quickly re-housed and stabilized. Therefore, the Community Development Department has indicated it will use these funds as directed, such as short-term or medium-term rental assistance, housing relocation, and stabilization services such as mediation, credit counseling, security or utility deposits, utility payments, moving cost assistance, and/or case management.

Public Housing Fund
Columbia is slated to receive $5,259,694 in formula allocations through the Public Housing Fund. These funds are to be used for capital and management activities of Public Housing Authorities, including modernization and development of public housing. The funds cannot be used for operations or rental assistance. Therefore, the Columbia Housing Authority will use these funds as instructed with priority consideration to the rehabilitation of vacant rental units and capital projects that are already underway or included in a 5-year capital fund plan.

Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance
The Section 8 Program was authorized by Congress in 1974 and developed by HUD to provide rental subsidies for eligible tenant families (including single persons) residing in newly constructed, rehabilitated and existing rental and cooperative apartment projects.

The rents of some of the residential units are subsidized by HUD under the Section 8 New Construction, Substantial Rehabilitation and/or Loan Management Set-Aside Programs. All such assistance is "project-based", i.e.; the subsidy is committed by HUD for the assisted units of a particular Mortgaged Property for a contractually determined period. Columbia's allocation will be used to fund contract renewals under the Section 8 program. In line with Congressional directives, the contract renewals will be funded on a full twelve-month cycle. This will avoid the payment disruptions that have occurred in recent years and enable owners to maintain their properties in an acceptable condition.

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