Roommates, y’all better say “good morning,” because the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Marcia Fudge is in the building!
She stepped into The Shade Room to discuss the American Rescue Plan (ARP) beyond the $1,400 stimmies. 1 in 5 Americans are at risk of losing their housing as we speak, but Auntie Fudge says help is finally here. The ARP includes $40 billion for housing and rental assistance- $5 billion of which are vouchers specifically for homeless people to purchase hotel rooms and other shelter immediately.
“We think that over the course of the next 12 months we can help over 130,000 people get a safe place to live,” Fudge said.
As far as the stimmies go, since homeless people typically don’t have bank accounts or access to the internet, they’ll need a little help contacting the appropriate offices.
A local HUD office or the IRS is a good place to start. Without bank accounts homeless people will receive physical checks in the mail; so a P.O. Box or local church, for example, will be needed to collect the stimulus.
Fudge insisted that homeless citizens should “contact any social service agency- just let us know where you are, and we’ll make sure the check gets to you.”
Roommates, if you or someone you know is impacted by this pandemic and is struggling with housing, be sure to head to www.hud.gov
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TSR STAFF: Judith Nwandu @judithnwandu