Congressman Hank Johnson announced Thursday more than $16 million in Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grants to provide permanent and transitional housing to homeless persons and their families in Georgia’s Fourth Congressional District.

The grants are Community Development Block Grants (CDBG); Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG); HOME awards and Continuum of Care Grants (CoC). The Fourth District and neighboring districts that include Congressional Districts 5 and 6 received $11.5 million in CDBGs, $3.3 million in HOME awards; more than $1 million in CoCs; and more than $900,000 in ESGs.

Of the $16 million, DeKalb County received more than $6.8 million and the Progressive Redevelopment Inc. in Decatur received more than $177,000 to fight homelessness.

“These grants are the life blood of our efforts to end homelessness, and help those who are experiencing both long-term homelessness as well as families confronting a sudden economic crisis,” said Johnson. “As our economy continues to recover, we must ensure everyone — no matter their circumstances — benefits from our efforts.”

-- The CDBG program provides annual grants to states and local governments to ensure decent affordable housing for the most vulnerable in our communities.
-- The ESG program provides annual grants for emergency shelters, rehabilitation and conversion of buildings to be used as emergency shelters, operation of emergency shelters, and homelessness prevention services.
-- CoC awards promote community-wide commitment to the goal of ending homelessness; provides funding for efforts by nonprofit providers and state and local governments to quickly re-house homeless individuals and families to minimize trauma and dislocation.
-- HOME funds help expand the supply of decent affordable housing to low-and-very-low income families.