Rep. Sherrill Announces $719,000 in Funding for Local Housing Authorities to Assist NJ-11 Families

Parsippany, NJ — Representative Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) announced today that eight housing authorities across NJ-11 received $719,000 in CARES Act funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to help low-income families in the district.

“Housing security is essential for families across our community and this latest funding from the CARES Act will help our neighbors stay in their homes during this difficult time,” said Representative Sherrill. “We need to do more to ensure all residents in NJ-11 have the resources they need to weather the economic impact of this pandemic and I will continue to fight for federal resources for North Jersey.”

“The Housing Authority County of Morris is extremely grateful to have received these Cares Act funds, which will enable us to better assist the most vulnerable citizens of Morris County,” said Kelly A. Stephens, Executive Director, Housing Authority County of Morris. “Housing Choice Voucher Participants needed assurance that their housing needs remained affordable; therefore, creating stability to the community. Our office had to make drastic changes in order to continue full operations during the pandemic. In the midst of COVID-19, we were implementing a brand new program to provide vouchers for homeless individuals in Morris County. Through the collaboration and support of local agencies, these individuals were still able to be housed in a safe, affordable environment. The Housing Authority will work with landlords to retain and/or increase owner participation in the program and identify where the funds will be best utilized.”

“We’re extremely pleased to see additional monies available in Morris County to deal with the dislocations brought about by COVID 19,” said Russ Hall, Chair of the Housing Alliance of Morris County. “The public housing authorities, like other local housing-oriented non-profits dealing with the impact of the virus on their day-to-day operations, have experienced significant unbudgeted demands on their resources. The additional support from HUD is timely and very welcome.”

“These funds will be a tremendous help in our efforts to continue to provide safe, sanitary and low cost housing to those families most in need,” said Lou Riccio, Executive Director, Madison Housing Authority. “The extra funding has enabled us to provide our residents with health related information and supplies. The Congresswoman should be applauded for her efforts in this regard. Our residents are most appreciative of these efforts.”

Bloomfield Township Housing Authority        $56,365

Boonton Housing Authority                             $41,161

Madison Housing Authority                            $124,004

Montclair Housing Authority                           $54,269

Morristown Housing Authority                        $36,178

Morris County Housing Authority                   $165,372

Passaic County Public Housing Agency        $215,964

West Orange Housing Authority                     $25,431

The eligible coronavirus-related activities include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Procuring cleaning supplies and/or services to maintain safe and sanitary Housing Choice Vouchers (HCV) units, including common areas of PHA-owned Project Based Voucher (PBV) projects.
• Relocation of participating families to health units or other designated units for testing, hospitalization, or quarantine, or transportation to these locations to limit the exposure that could be caused by using mass transportation.
• Additional costs to supportive services vendors incurred due to coronavirus.
• Costs to retain or increase owner participation in the HCV Program, such as incentive or retention costs (e.g. the PHA offers owner an incentive payment to participate in recognition of added difficulties of making units available for HCV families to rent while stay-at-home orders or social distancing practices are in effect).
• Costs for providing childcare for the children of PHA staff that would not have otherwise been incurred (e.g. children are at home due to school closings, PHA staff are working outside of regular work schedules, etc.).

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