Leveraging HUD Resources for COVID-19

April 17, 2020

If a community in your CoC received funding under the CARES Act (the list of initial recipients is here), or if you have questions about how HUD funding you already receive may be spent for the duration of this crisis, you might be looking for some guidance or technical assistance from HUD. This document is designed to get you started. 

For the most up-to-date HUD resources, you can:

How can I determine whether my community has received CARES Act Funding?

You can see a list of initial recipients on HUD’s website (click “All CARES Act Recipients”). Because the CARES Act allocated funding through the existing ESG, CDBG, and HOPWA programs, the communities that got funding during the initial round of allocations are all existing recipients of those programs’ funds. 

We think a number of ESG-CARES recipients will pass through their funds to CoCs in their jurisdictions, but that’s up to each recipient, so we’re recommending you give your local recipients a call, if you haven’t already, to let them know what you’re hoping to do together. A list of primary contacts for ESG (and other) Program recipients is available on HUD’s website here to help you get in touch and coordinate efforts.

We think an additional $1 billion of ESG-CV funds will be allocated by the end of April 2020 and that another $2 billion (for a total of $4 billion) will be allocated by the end of June 2020. The first billion used the existing ESG formula, but the next few rounds will use a new one.

Sources: 

My community has received CARES Act Funding. How can I request technical assistance (TA) to help manage it?

The type of support you might want depends on the kind of question you have:

  • For specific, bounded questions about what’s allowed, your best best is to use the HUD Ask A Question (AAQ) portal. HUD triages AAQ questions pretty quickly to expert TA providers (often the same folks who provide on-the-ground TA), and you’ll typically get a response within 3-5 business days (maybe a little longer these days). 
  • If you have questions you think other communities might share, it’s worth checking out the HUD Daily Resource Digest or searching the frequently asked questions (FAQ) portal for a relevant response. FAQs get triaged from the most common questions coming into HUD on the AAQ portal, so if the question you’re after is one you’re pretty sure others have too, it might already be answered there.
  • Finally, you might have more than one question, or you might be struggling just to get started at all. If you think your community might need ongoing, tailored support in managing CARES resources, the best way to let HUD know is through the HUD Exchange TA Portal (disclaimer: the need is high right now, and they may not be able to help everyone who needs it). Because this form takes between 30 and 45 minutes to complete, we’d suggest coordinating with your local field office and CoC lead agency before putting the time in to fill it out.

We don’t know yet whether CARES HUD TA will operate across all HUD programs or whether it’ll be broken up by program type (ESG, CDBG, HOPWA, etc.), but we know HUD will let you know what you’re eligible for. Just ask! The AAQ portal and the FAQ section operate across almost all HUD programs, so don’t worry about using those tools.

Sources: 

My community already receives HUD TA through an existing program. Do I need to request additional technical assistance for managing CARES funding?

We know that dozens of CoCs already receiving HUD TA through the CoC program will automatically receive CARES TA, and we think that HUD will inform those CoCs directly. But we’re not sure whether every current recipient of HUD TA will automatically receive CARES TA, so we encourage you to check with your local field office (list here) or submit a question through the AAQ portal to check. When in doubt, ask! 

Sources: 

QUALITY CHECK

Learn more about our process for vetting information.

Scope

Graphic of eye in magnifying glass, created by Adrien Coquet from the Noun Project

What context was the data underlying this recommendation collected in?

  • This data was collected from publicly available HUD resources. It was also reviewed for directional soundness by a member of the HUD SNAPS team and current HUD TA providers.

What context or question do we recommend this resource for?

  • We recommend this resource for communities who have questions about how to leverage technical assistance for federal funding related to COVID-19.

What other contexts do we reasonably think this recommendation might apply to, and on what basis?

  • N/A

Authority

verified by Gregor Cresnar from the Noun Project

Who reviewed this data, and what are their credentials to assess it?

  • A member of the BfZ team who joined us from a current HUD TA provider drafted this guidance, after which we consulted with HUD TA providers and a member of the HUD SNAPS team for directional soundness.

Novelty

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When was the data underlying this recommendation collected?

  • Links in this resource are accurate as of 4/16/20.

Do we have reason to believe the situation has materially changed since that date, or is likely to change soon?

  • We anticipate that this guidance may change over time and recommend subscribing to HUD’s email update list for the latest guidance.

Qualifications

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When was the data underlying this recommendation collected?

  • N/A

Do we have reason to believe the situation has materially changed since that date, or is likely to change soon?

  • N/A

Open Questions

questions by Gregor Cresnar from the Noun Project

What elements of this resource were we unable to assess?

  • Whether CARES TA will be unified across existing programs or specific to individual funding streams.

What elements of this resource do we want to know more about?

  • Whether CARES TA will be unified across existing programs or specific to individual funding streams.
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