AUSTIN (KXAN) – Eighteen programs in Travis County will receive a portion of $64.7 million being given to Texas by the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department for homeless programs. As many as 240 programs statewide will benefit from the funds.

The Austin area will get $4.2 million via the H.U.D. Contiuum of Care program as quickly as possible in order to prevent interruption in federal assistance, as announced on Tuesday. New projects will get the money in 2012.

“The grants we’re awarding today will literally keep the doors of our shelters open and will help those on the front lines of ending homelessness do what they do best,” said H.U.D. Secretary Shaun Donovan.  “It’s incredible that as we work to recover from the greatest economic decline since the Great Depression, the total number of homeless Americans is declining, in large part because of these funds.”

Last week, HUD announced its 2011 “point in time” estimate of the number of homeless persons in America.  Approximately 3,000 cities and counties reported 636,000 homeless persons on a single night in January of 2011, a 2.1 percent decline from the year before.  This documented reduction in homelessness was noticed among all population groups including individuals, families, and those experiencing long-term or chronic homeless.  In addition, HUD’s estimate reveals a 12 percent reduction in homelessness among veterans.

The money will be used to provide permanent and transitional housing to homeless persons, as well as:

• job training
• health care
• mental health counseling
• substance abuse treatment
• child care

Continuum of Care grants are awarded competitively to local programs to meet the needs of homeless clients. These grants fund a wide variety of programs, from street outreach and assessment programs to transitional and permanent housing for homeless persons and families.

The breakdown of distribution to Texas is as follows:

• San Antonio/Bexar County CoC $ 6,618,864
• Corpus Christi/Nueces County CoC $ 1,012,724
• Austin/Travis County CoC $ 4,298,322
• Victoria/Dewitt/Lavaca/Gonzales CoC $ 290,439
• Dallas/Irving CoC $ 13,835,287
• Fort Worth/Arlington/Tarrant County CoC $ 10,116,502
• El Paso CoC $ 2,689,828
• Waco/McLennan County CoC $ 606,764
• Texas State CoC $ 2,152,498
• Denton County CoC $ 609,336
• Amarillo CoC $ 617,181
• Houston/Harris County CoC $ 21,129,897
• Bryan/College Station/Brazos Valley CoC $ 259,686
• Montgomery County CoC $ 176,134
• Beaumont/Port Arthur/S.E. Texas CoC $ 768,502

Total funds for Texas equals $64,731,964.