Connecticut rent assistance program receives $11 million in funding. Goal is to prevent evictions. - Hartford Courant

Connecticut’s rental assistance programme has received an $11 cardinal boost successful backing from the national government, meaning much assistance volition beryllium disposable for tenants successful need, according to Gov. Ned Lamont’s office.

Initially, the UniteCT programme had astir $400 cardinal from the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan Act. Over the past fewer months, the U.S. Department of the Treasury has been redistributing wealth from states and localities that were dilatory to walk their money.

The rent assistance programme aims to forestall evictions of radical who struggled financially during the pandemic.

After a dilatory start as the authorities acceptable up its programme successful aboriginal 2021, Connecticut picked up the gait connected distributing its funds and has received further wealth nether the reallocation. The authorities had previously requested astir $243 million from the national authorities successful a papers submitted precocious past year.

UniteCT provides up to 12 months of rent and electrical assistance to households that gain up to 80% of the country median income and were financially impacted by the pandemic.

The programme stopped taking applications successful February, aft which evictions spiked to immoderate of their highest numbers successful a period since astatine slightest 2017.

In caller weeks, the state’s 211 hotline has been receiving about 1,000 housing-and-shelter-related calls per day. The hotline aims to link residents with a assortment of services, including housing, nutrient and intelligence wellness care.

“Thanks to UniteCT and the exigency backing we received from the national government, thousands of renters financially impacted by the pandemic person been capable to stay successful their homes and landlords person continued receiving payments connected their behalf,” Lamont said successful a statement. “I applaud Connecticut’s Congressional delegation and the Biden-Harris medication for their ongoing committedness to supply the resources required to support our families safely housed.”

So far, UniteCT has distributed astir $322.6 cardinal to astir 50,000 households, according to a state Department of Housing dashboard. Another $88 cardinal are payments successful progress.

On average, households person astir $8,300 successful rent assistance and astir $1,500 successful inferior assistance, according to a property merchandise from Lamont’s office.

Typically, payments spell straight to landlords connected behalf of the tenants. Renters crossed the state and successful Connecticut person reported trouble getting assistance due to the fact that of landlords who were unwilling to enactment successful the program. Landlords person said they’re frustrated by a dilatory outgo process.

After the programme stopped taking applications, the authorities pulled astir 20,000 incomplete applications from consideration. About 10,700 of those were due to the fact that the landlord hadn’t completed the application, and different 9,500 due to the fact that the tenant hadn’t completed the application.

The authorities plans to leverage the further funds with a $1.5 cardinal successful its rent bank, which the authorities legislature approved during the past session.

“As we each know, the pandemic was pugnacious connected everyone, but particularly pugnacious for our renters and homeowners,” said Seila Mosquera-Bruno, the Connecticut Department of Housing commissioner, successful the property release.

“Since March of 2021, done UniteCT, Connecticut has distributed implicit astir 80% of its archetypal tranches of wealth from the national government. With this further funding, we volition beryllium capable to spot an adjacent greater accent connected assisting those households that are either presently going done an eviction oregon facing an eviction.”

More accusation astir UniteCT is available online.

Ginny Monk is simply a newsman for The Connecticut Mirror (https://ctmirror.org/ ). Copyright 2022 © The Connecticut Mirror.