Ho-Chunk Nation officials in Wisconsin cut the ribbon on the Ho-Chunk Veterans Supportive Housing Project on June 18, 2015,. Photo from Facebook
The Obama administration on Friday announced $5.9 million in grants to combat homelessness among American Indian and Alaska Native veterans. The money marks the first time that the Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program will benefit Indian Country. The 26 tribal recipients will be able to meet the specific needs of their warriors by providing them with rental vouchers from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and services from the Department of Veterans Affairs, Cabinet officials said. "Expanding HUD-VASH to Native communities will help our nation honor the service and the sacrifice of these brave Americans," HUD Secretary Julian Castro said on a conference call from Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he met with the Inter-Tribal Council of the Five Civilized Tribes. "Targeting HUD-VASH vouchers to veterans living on tribal lands opens new opportunities for helping Native American veterans exit homelessness as quickly as possible" VA Secretary Robert McDonald added in a press release.
Veterans open the Apsaalooke Warriors Complex in Crow Agency, Montana on September 1, 2015. The Crow Nation help fund the 15-unit facility by selling tax credits. Photo from Crow Nation News / Facebook
According to HUD and VA, the $5.9 million will enable tribes to assist 500 veterans. Awards range from $391,740 to the Association of Village Council Presidents in Alaska, a grant that will help 20 veterans in a state with high living costs, to $123,288 for Zuni Pueblo in New Mexico, whose leaders plan to house 10 veterans. "There's no one set amount that is being given to each tribe -- it's based on the number of homeless veterans," Castro said on the call. In Oklahoma -- the state with the second-largest number of Native Americans -- five tribes received grants. Three went to members of the Inter-Tribal Council of the Five Civilized Tribes, whose leaders are wrapping up their winter meeting on Friday afternoon. "We applaud Secretary Castro for coming to Oklahoma and addressing our tribal governments on an issue that is important for us," Cherokee Nation Chief Bill John Baker said in a press release. "The partnership between HUD and the VA will ensure our Cherokee patriots get the assistance they need after serving our country. Cherokee Nation is striving to do more and provide more for our military men and women."
Leaders of the Inter-Tribal Council of the Five Civilized Tribes, from left: Chickasaw Nation Governor Bill Anoatubby, Seminole Nation Chief Leonard M. Harjo, Muscogee Nation Chief James Floyd, Choctaw Nation Chief Gary Batton and Cherokee Nation Chief Bill John Baker. Photo from Chief Bill J. Baker / Twitter
The tribe's grant of $194,405 will assist 20 warriors. Gary Cooper, the director of the Housing Authority of the Cherokee Nation, said eligible participants are being identified. “This is 20 families we can help that may not have had assistance before, and a demonstration project that once we prove is a good idea for Indian Country, will be around longer and can hopefully benefit more tribes," Cooper said. The Obama administration has been focusing on reducing homelessness among veterans across the nation since 2010. According to Secretary McDonald, the homelessness rate has dropped 36 percent in the last five years. Tribes have been doing their part even without federal assistance. The Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin opened a $1.5 million, 11,000-square-foot housing facility for veterans last June. The Crow Tribe of Montana dedicated a $2 million apartment complex for veterans in September. The Bureau of Indian Affairs also finalized a new new regulation that will allow tribes to factor in their veterans when seeking funds from the Housing Improvement Program. The full list of tribes that received awards under the Tribal HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (Tribal HUD-VASH) Program follows:
| State | Tribe | City | Amount | # of Veterans to be Housed |
| Alaska | Cook Inlet Housing Authority | Anchorage | $313,058 | 20 |
| Tlingit-Haida Regional Housing Authority | Juneau | $324,749 | 20 | |
| The Association of Village Council Presidents Regional Housing Authority | Bethel | $391,740 | 20 | |
| Arizona | Navajo Housing Authority | Window Rock | $268,835 | 20 |
| Hopi Housing Authority | Polacca | $210,432 | 15 | |
| San Carlos Apache Tribe of the San Carlos Reservation, Arizona | San Carlos | $233,100 | 15 | |
| Tohono O'odham Nation of Arizona | Sells | $302,936 | 20 | |
| Minnesota | Leech Lake Housing Authority | Cass Lake | $159,022 | 20 |
| White Earth Reservation Housing Authority | White Earth | $142,980 | 20 | |
| Montana | Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation of Montana | Browning | $229,171 | 20 |
| New Mexico | Zuni Tribe of the Zuni Reservation, New Mexico | Zuni | $123,288 | 10 |
| North Carolina | Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina | Pembroke | $185,604 | 20 |
| North Dakota | Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians | Belcourt | $173,942 | 20 |
| Standing Rock Housing Authority | Fort Yates | $234,178 | 20 | |
| Oklahoma | Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma | Tahlequah | $194,405 | 20 |
| Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribes | Concho | $272,016 | 20 | |
| Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma | Hugo | $246,992 | 20 | |
| Osage Nation of Oklahoma | Pawhuska | $265,438 | 20 | |
| Muscogee(Creek) Nation, Oklahoma | Okmulgee | $216,566 | 20 | |
| Oregon | Warm Springs Housing Authority | Warm Springs | $240,237 | 20 |
| South Dakota | Ogala Sioux Tribe of the Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota | Pine Ridge | $190,898 | 20 |
| Sicangu Wicoti Awayankapi (Rosebud) | Rosebud | $183,011 | 20 | |
| Washington | Yakama Nation Housing Authority | Wapato | $145,283 | 20 |
| Spokane Indian Housing Authority | Spokane | $245,809 | 20 | |
| Colville Indian Housing Authority | Nespelem | $179,892 | 20 | |
| Wisconsin | Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin | Oneida | $204,934 | 20 |
| TOTAL: | $5,878,516 | 500 |
Housing Improvement Program (November 10, 2015)
Housing Improvement Program (January 28, 2015)
Housing Improvement Program (January 2, 2015)
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