The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of Veterans Affairs, and United States Interagency Council on Homelessness recently confirmed that Montgomery County has effectively ended homelessness among veterans.
Additionally, Montgomery County has now been confirmed by the national Zero: 2016 campaign as one of the first four communities in the country to achieve a “Functional Zero” system for veteran homelessness. Functional Zero is reached when the number of veterans experiencing homelessness, both on the streets and in shelters, is less than the number of veterans being connected with permanent housing each month.
County funding committed in 2015 enabled Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless to set up a permanent supportive housing program to serve up to 20 veterans, and Bethesda Cares to establish a rapid-rehousing rental assistance program to serve up to 15 veterans. Both of these locally funded programs are permanent housing programs and have ongoing social services supports for the clients/tenants included as part of the contracts.
Visit www.mcch.net for more information.
Visit www.bethesdacares.org for more information.