Deadline: 30-Dec-22
The Legal Services for Veterans is seeking applications for Legal Services for Homeless Veterans Program is to provide legal services grants to public or non-profit private entities who will provide legal services to eligible Veterans who are homeless or at risk for homelessness.
The goal of the LSV Program is to assist homeless and at-risk Veterans who have unaddressed needs for legal services, which may create barriers to housing stability. Services provided to Veterans under this NOFO are designed to help Veterans increase housing stability by providing legal services, including eviction defense, that will help Veterans avoid homelessness or help them return to permanent housing in the community.
When serving participants who are at risk for homelessness, the grantee must document that the Veteran does not have sufficient resources or support networks (e.g., friends, faith-based or other social networks) immediately available to prevent them from becoming homeless. The definition of at-risk may be demonstrated by one or more of the following living situations:
- Has moved because of economic reasons two or more times during the 60 days immediately preceding the application for homelessness prevention assistance;
- Is living in the home of another because of economic hardship;
- Has been notified in writing that their right to occupy their current housing or the living situation will be terminated within 21 days after the date of application for assistance;
- Is constructively evicted from their current housing because of untenable conditions created by the landlord such as shutting off electricity and water or discriminatory acts;
- Lives in a hotel or motel, and the cost of the hotel or motel stay is not paid by charitable organizations or by Federal, State or local government programs for low-income individuals;
- Lives in a single-room occupancy or efficiency apartment unit in which there reside more than two persons or lives in a larger housing unit in which reside more than 1.5 persons reside per room, as defined by the United States Census Bureau;
- Is exiting a publicly funded institution or system of care (such as a health-care facility, a mental health facility, foster care or another youth facility, or correction program or institution);
- Is fleeing/attempting to escape domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking or other dangerous or life-threatening conditions that relate to violence against the individual, including a child, that has either taken place within the individual's primary nighttime residence or has made the individual afraid to return to their primary nighttime residence; and
- Otherwise lives in housing that has characteristics associated with instability and an increased risk for homelessness.
Funding Priorities
- This NOFO will provide awards designed to address the needs identified in 38 CFR 79.20(a), including legal services related to housing; family law; protective orders and other matters related to domestic or intimate partner violence; access to health care; requests to upgrade military discharge; consumer law, such as financial services, debt collection, garnishments, usury, fraud and financial exploitation; employment law; and the top 10 unmet legal needs as enumerated on VA's annual Community Homelessness Assessment, Local Education and Networking Groups (CHALENG) survey for the grant award year.
- Funds provided through this NOFO must not duplicate or replace funds provided from any Federal, State or local government agency or program to assist homeless Veterans.
Funding Information
- Estimated Total Program Funding: $11,250,000
- Award Ceiling: $150,000.
Eligibility Criteria
- An eligible applicant is a public or non-profit private entity as defined in 38 CFR 79.10. Applicants must have the necessary technical and administrative abilities and resources to execute the program successfully. Applicants must provide sufficient eligibility information to allow VA to evaluate their application for scoring purposes.
- Applicants with 501(c)(3) Internal Revenue status must provide a copy of their status determination letter received from the Internal Revenue Service. Award recipients must maintain their status as 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(19) non-profit, State or local government or recognized Indian Tribal government as defined by General Services Administration regulations, 41 CFR 105-71.102, for the entire award cycle.
- Faith-based organizations may apply for this Grant Program. Faith-based organizations are eligible, on the same basis as any other organization, to participate, as described in 38 CFR 79.80.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
For more information, visit https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=344083