VA Announces Three Notices of Funding Availability (NOFAs)

Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) released a NOFA for existing SSVF grantees whose grants are scheduled to end by September 30, 2018. Through the SSVF program, grantees will be expected to leverage supportive services grant funds to enhance the housing stability of very low-income Veteran families who are occupying permanent housing. The VA specifically includes the SOAR model in this NOFA: "Grantees are expected to access the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's SSI/SSDI Outreach, Access, and Recovery (SOAR) program directly by training staff and providing the service or subcontracting services to an organization to provide SOAR services." We encourage grantees to review the SSVF and SOAR Integration Toolkit for resources on incorporating SOAR into supportive services and community planning efforts. The deadline for this funding opportunity is January 12, 2018 and more information can be found in the Federal Register or the SSVF website.  Grant and Per Diem A second NOFA provides transitional housing beds and supportive services under the VA's Homeless Providers Grant and Per Diem (GPD) program, which is not limited to those who have provided GPD services in the past. The VA expects to fund 1,500 beds with this NOFA for applicants who will use one or a combination of the following housing models: Bridge Housing, Low Demand, Hospital-to-Housing, Clinical Treatment, and Service-Intensive Transitional Housing and Service Centers. Part of the application process requires eligible entities to collaborate with their local Continuum of Care (CoC) and document their experience with and plan for providing housing and supportive services for homeless Veterans, as well as their role in community planning and coordination. This may be an opportunity for SOAR providers to partner with eligible entities to document local success in increasing access to income and disability benefits for homeless Veterans. The deadline for this funding opportunity is February 28, 2018 and full details can be found in the Federal Register or on the GPD website. GPD Transition in Place Model  An additional funding notice from the GPD program is for applicants who will serve homeless Veterans through a Transition in Place (TIP) housing model to facilitate housing stabilization. The VA expects to fund approximately 500 beds over a two-year period under this NOFA. The TIP housing model offers Veteran residents housing in which support services transition out of the residence over time, rather than the resident. This leaves the resident in place at the residence and not forced to find other housing while stabilizing. As with the above GPD NOFA, applicants are asked to collaborate with their CoCs to document how they will provide supportive services to Veterans, including helping Veterans increase their income and/or benefits. The deadline for this funding opportunity is February 21, 2018 and full details can be found in the Federal Register or on the GPD website.

The SOAR TA Center is sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Disclaimer: The SOAR Technical Assistance Center is sending this NewsFlash with support from SAMHSA, HHS. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official view of HHS or SAMHSA.