The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced this week that it will send $4.4 million to the city of Tallahassee to help families dealing with lead-paint hazards.
The funds are part of more than $125 million going to more than two dozen state and local governments across the nation.
“HUD is providing these grants through its Grant Program to identify and clean up dangerous lead in low-income families’ older homes. These grants include more than $13 million from HUD’s Healthy Homes Supplemental funding to help communities address homes with housing-related health and safety hazards in addition to lead-based paint hazards,” HUD noted. “These investments will protect families and children by targeting significant lead and health hazards in over 4,000 low-income homes for which other resources are not available.”
“Today, we are extending our efforts to improve the health and safety of children and other members of families with low incomes,” said U.S. HUD Sec. Marcia Fudge on Tuesday. “The funding provided today will help these families – especially their children – to be healthier and to improve their attendance and experiences in school and work over the coming decades.”
“HUD is making clear, through these grants, that it prioritizes healthy and safe homes in communities around the Nation,” said Matthew Ammon, the director of HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes. “An important part of becoming and staying healthy is a hazard-free home. HUD is committed to protecting families from lead and other housing-related health and safety hazards and to providing healthy, affordable, and sustainable housing.”
Tallahassee will get $4 million to cover 173 units and another $400,000 through a healthy homes supplement. The city of Tallahassee is the only government in Florida getting funded.
