Housing advocates are responding to changes in federal funding that could impact how North Carolina tackles homelessness.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is overhauling its federal Continuum of Care program, which is the largest homeless initiative it oversees. The change will slash funding for permanent housing projects and include new eligibility conditions.
It comes in the middle of what’s typically a two-year cycle for competitive grants.
“Asking folks to reshape the way that they've been delivering homeless services for 15 years in a three-week time period is not the way that you get results in programmatic evaluation,” says Liz Carbone, project specialist with the North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness.
She says the abrupt change could delay funding for programs across the state and leave nonprofits in rural areas without support.
“This policy shift takes away the resources that actually help North Carolinians exit homelessness for good, and instead prioritizes the band-aid solutions, right, like shelter and street outreach. You know, those are important, but our communities are already doing that,” Carbone says.
According to the Urban Institute, 60 percent of permanent supportive housing beds in the state rely on federal funds.
Local governments and nonprofit groups across the country are suing the Trump administration to block the changes.
