Funding Available for Housing Agencies through HUD's Job Plus Pilot Program

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)’s office of Public and Indian Housing has released a Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for Public Housing Agencies to develop place-based approaches to improve employment outcomes for public housing residents. Called the Jobs Plus Program, it will fund Public Housing Agencies to use work readiness preparation, employer linkages, job placement, educational advancement technology skills, and financial literacy training. HUD expects to award 8 grantees with grants of up to $3 million to implement the Jobs Plus Program in their communities.

The NOFA identifies a number of principles that will guide grantees in the program:

• Examination of labor market data in their local communities to identify industries and jobs where there are the most opportunities for residents 
• Creating career pathways for residents through work-based training and education 
• Support learning with employers through on-the-job training, internships and other work experience 
• Actively break down barriers to access to job training 
• Establish key partnerships between local housing authorities, residents, Workforce Investment Boards, local businesses and other key community stakeholders 

Using these principles, the program will implement employment-related services such as job readiness workshops, job search and placement assistance and post-job placement retention support and coaching. It will also provide financial incentives, including the Job Plus Earned Income Disregard (JPEID) which is a rent incentive for residents in the program. It will also include robust programming around community support for resident employment by building leaderships, resident participation and empowerment and relationship building between the residents and others related to economic development in the community.

To find out more about the program and whether you are eligible to apply, you can access both the grant opportunity and the NOFA online. Applications are due on December 17, 2014.