LOUISIANA Community Mental Health Services Block Grant ...

develop housing support services for 600 adults with mental illness (60 for each of the 10 planning
regions) and 24 hour residential care beds to serve 100 people (10 for each of the 10 planning
regions) in 2006. This program was successfully continued through FY 2008-09. The program
participants were successfully transitioned to the federally funded PSH that had been previously
advocated for in the United States Congress. The Department of Housing and Urban Development
administers the PSH housing program with a subsidy administrator.
The state has continued to pursue housing resources through the HUD funding streams such as the
Continuum of Care for the Homeless program and the Section 811 and Section 8 programs over the
past ten years. In addition, OBH is developing partnerships with Rural Development housing
programs and state Housing Authorities. The American Reinvestment and Recovery ACT of 2009
is a welcome housing resource to stimulate and provide bridge subsidy funds for some of our most
vulnerable homeless and/or disability populations. Specifically the Homeless Prevention and Rapid
Re-Housing (HPRP) program has the potential provide widespread relief. Louisiana received over
$26,000,000 in HPRP funding with DCFC Administering $13.5 million and the other funds going to
direct allocation to existing community providers. Our goal is to collaborate across departmental
agencies and to utilize all available housing funding resources to develop or partner with housing
providers to develop a sufficient housing stock of affordable housing. While shifts in HUD policy
have created barriers to persons with mental illness qualifying for housing resources through the
Continuum of Care, and the Section 811 and Section 8 programs have been severely reduced, the
HUD programs continue to be a focus of development activities. OMH Regional Housing
Coordinators are active participants in the regional housing/homeless coalitions. In some cases
these coordinators are in leadership positions in their local coalitions. Service providers have
pursued Section 811 applications and sought to develop fruitful relationships with local housing
authorities 202 Elderly Housing programs and The Louisiana Housing Finance Agency to pursue
disability required rental units set-asides. It is essential and critical that housing development
continue with particular emphasize on strategies to coordinate tax credits, rental vouchers (Section 8
and Shelter + Care) and affordable financing. The Weatherization Programs and Rental
Rehabilitation administered through our local Community Developments needs continual funding
and efficient access to assistance. Federal applications for housing and support services submitted
by mental health providers have increased over the years as agencies search for avenues to develop
housing and support services for the mental health consumers they serve.
There is much activity around assisting individuals with SMI to obtain and maintain appropriate
housing. Many successful programs to assist individuals with housing needs are operating in each
Region and LGE as can be seen in the table below:
PART C LOUISIANA FY 2011 PAGE 109
SECTION III: ADULT PLAN – CRITERION 1
COMPREHENSIVE COMMUNITY-BASED MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES -- SYSTEM OF CARE & AVAILABLE SERVICES