November 5, 2025
| Dear Friends, Contact Congress Now As a national expert on homelessness who worked with UNITY in the critical years after Hurricane Katrina, I have returned to lead UNITY’s public policy efforts to reduce homelessness at a critical time for the nation, for New Orleans, and for Louisiana. I am writing you because we urgently need your help! The homelessness services and rent assistance grants on which vulnerable children and adults depend around the country are in grave danger of being delayed or even dismantled, according to recent federal announcements and news media reports. This would have a disproportionate impact on the New Orleans area, where over 3500 disabled, elderly or vulnerable adults and children rescued from homelessness are currently housed in apartments and provided stabilization services using these federal funds, matched by your donations. We have reason to fear that our local landlords would not get rent assistance checks on time, perhaps not at all, and that impoverished people with severe disabilities and children who have been rescued from homelessness are in grave danger of being evicted and tossed back out on the streets next year if we don’t act now. The Issue In a reverse decision, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has announced that it plans to disrupt the two-year funding cycle of the federal Homelessness Continuum of Care (CoC) grants on which New Orleans and Louisiana and the rest of the nation depend heavily to house vulnerable people, which would result in significant delays to these grants. Now is the time, as Congress negotiates the term of a Continuing Resolution (CR) to reopen the government, to contact your U.S. Senator and Member of Congress and urge them to require HUD to honor the two-year homelessness Continuum of Care grant cycle. At present, $67 million in Continuum of Care grants provide rental assistance and stabilization services for 7,420 people in Louisiana. These are in danger if the two-year grant cycle is not honored. Here is the simple message we want you to tell Congress Members: Please include a provision in the Continuing Resolution (CR) to renew the vital homelessness CoC grants expiring during calendar year 2026 for one 12-month period to avoid vulnerable people being evicted. URGE CONGRESS TO REQUIRE HUD TO MAINTAIN FUNDING FOR ESSENTIAL HOMELESSNESS HOUSING AND SERVICES FOR THE MOST VULNERABLE CHILDREN AND ADULTS. Sincerely, Dr. Chandra Crawford, Ph.D. Vice President for Public Policy UNITY of Greater New Orleans |