May 03, 2010

The Housing Authority of the City of El Paso, Texas (HACEP) is receiving $28.3 million for the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program (formerly known as Section 8) from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the 2010 calendar year, an increase of $872,000 (3 percent) from last year.

“This funding allows HACEP to provide much-needed housing assistance to over 5,300 El Paso families,” said HACEP CEO Gerald Cichon. “Despite the challenges of today’s economy, the HCV program continues to provide stable living environments for low-income families in the private market and infuses a significant source of income into the El Paso economy.”

HACEP’s HCV Program provides a total of 5,322 vouchers to very low-income families who earn less than 50 percent of the area median income. In order to qualify, a family of four must earn less than $22,800 per year. A housing subsidy is paid to the landlord directly by HACEP on behalf of the participating family. The family then pays the difference between the actual rent charged by the landlord and the amount subsidized by HUD. This allows a family to live in a high-quality, privately-owned house or apartment of their choice at an affordable rate.

In related news, HACEP recently opened its HCV waitlist through an online pre-application process and received more than 3,200 successful applications. This greatly improved operational efficiency and increased accessibility to all interested applicants. In addition, HACEP provides housing assistance to homeless veterans through the HUD-VASH and Veterans Lodge Programs in partnership with the El Paso VA Healthcare System. A total of 85 slots are available to homeless veterans and their families to help them transition from homeless into a safe, secure and stable lifestyle along with individualized case management services.

The Housing Authority of the City of El Paso, Texas (HACEP) is an independent local governmental agency that provides safe, decent and affordable housing to assisted families at or below 80 percent of the area median income. HACEP is one of the 20th largest public housing authorities in the United States and provides affordable housing assistance to 40,000 low- to moderate-income El Pasoans. HACEP operates an $80 million annual budget and is regulated and primarily funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. To learn more, log on to www.hacep.org.

Shane Griffith - Public Information Officer
sgriffith@hacep.org
(915) 849-3710