[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 188 (Monday, September 28, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Page 60882]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-21352]


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DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS


Rental and Utility Assistance for Certain Low-Income Veteran 
Families

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) Program 
has enabled grantees to augment available housing options for homeless 
Veterans in high-rent burden communities by increasing the rental 
assistance for up to 2 years before recertification. This notice will 
establish locations where the SSVF grantees can place Veterans in 
housing with this rental subsidy.

DATES: SSVF grantees can place Veterans in housing with the rental 
subsidy described in title 38 CFR 62.34(a)(8) effective October 1, 
2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Kuhn, Homeless Program Office, 
Supportive Services for Veteran Families Program Office, 810 Vermont 
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20420, 202-632-8596. (This is not a toll-free 
number.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In a document published in the Federal 
Register on August 28, 2019, the Department of Veterans Affairs 
published a final rule, which revised its regulations that govern the 
SSVF Program, which is authorized under 38 U.S.C 2044. 84 FR 45074. 
This rule, which amended 38 CFR 62.34(a)(6) and (8), extends the 
ability of SSVF grantees to provide rental assistance in certain areas 
where the limited availability of affordable housing makes it difficult 
to reduce a community's population of homeless Veterans. Through the 
provision of these subsidies, the pool of available housing can be 
expanded as program participants have access to a broader rental 
market. Section 62.34(a)(8) states that extremely low-income Veteran 
families and very low-income Veteran families who meet the criteria of 
38 CFR 62.11 may be eligible to receive a rental subsidy for a 2-year 
period without recertification. Section 62.34(a)(8) further states that 
the applicable counties will be published annually in the Federal 
Register. As stated in the notice, a family must live in one of these 
applicable counties to be eligible for this subsidy. The counties will 
be chosen based on the cost and availability of affordable housing for 
both individuals and families within that county.
    On February 12, 2020, VA published a list of eligible counties for 
Fiscal Year 2020. SSVF seeks to expand the that list to include some 
adjacent counties frequently used as housing options for Veteran 
families. On July 20, 2020, VHA issued a memorandum consistent with 42 
U.S.C. 5141, which waived the limitation in section 62.34(a)(8) on the 
publication of eligible counties to once annually. Accordingly, SSVF 
may now publish applicable counties for the rental subsidy in section 
62.34(a)(8) more than once annually in the Federal Register during the 
period indicated in the July 20, 2020, memorandum. This notice 
identifies additional counties designated for purposes of the shallow 
subsidy under the SSVF program.
    Locations: In addition to the counties listed in 85 FR 8098, this 
rental subsidy will be available in the following counties:
    California: Sacramento, Kings, Tulare, Ventura, Solano, Santa Cruz, 
Amador and San Joaquin;
    Maryland: Prince Georges and Montgomery;
    Virginia: Fairfax and Prince William;
    Washington: Pierce and Snohomish;
    Hawaii: Kauai, Maui and Hawaii; and
    New York: Nassau, Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Ulster, Sullivan 
and Suffolk.

Signing Authority

    The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, or designee, approved this 
document and authorized the undersigned to sign and submit the document 
to the Office of the Federal Register for publication electronically as 
an official document of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Brooks D. 
Tucker, Acting Chief of Staff, Department of Veterans Affairs, approved 
this document on September 21, 2020 for publication.

Luvenia Potts,
Regulation Development Coordinator,Office of Regulation Policy & 
Management, Office of the Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2020-21352 Filed 9-25-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8320-01-P