OFFICE
OF HEALTHY HOMES AND LEAD HAZARD CONTROL, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING
AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
AUTHORIZATION:
Housing
and Urban Development Act of 1970, Sections 501 and 502; Departments
of Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development, and Independent
Agencies Appropriations Act of 2002, Public Law 107-73.
The
purpose of the Healthy Homes Initiative is to develop, demonstrate
and promote cost effective, preventive measures to correct multiple
safety and health hazards in the home environment that produce serious
diseases and injuries in children. HUD is interested in promoting
approaches that are cost-effective and efficient and that result
in the reduction of health threats for the maximum number of residents
for the long run; in particular, low-income children. The overall
goals and objectives of the HHI are: (1) Mobilize public and private
resources, involving cooperation among all levels of government,
the private sector, and faith-based and community-based organizations
to develop the most promising, cost-effective methods for identifying
and controlling housing-based hazards; (2) Build local capacity
to operate sustainable programs that will continue to prevent and,
where they occur, minimize and control housing-based hazards in
low and very low income residences when HUD funding is exhausted;
(3) Affirmatively further fair housing and environmental justice.
TYPES
OF ASSISTANCE:
Project Grants. Place Cursor Here for Definition
USES
AND USE RESTRICTIONS:
Healthy
Homes Demonstration: This program focuses on demonstration projects
that implement housing assessment, maintenance, renovation and construction
techniques to identify and correct housing-related illness and injury
risk factors. Healthy Homes and Lead Technical Studies Program:
This program focuses on research projects for developing new methods
of evaluation and control of housing-based hazards. HUD will evaluate
all Healthy Homes Initiative (Demonstration, and Healthy Homes and
Lead Technical Studies Programs) proposals based on the elements
described below. Although Demonstration grantees are expected to
focus efforts in the demonstration category, the activities of a
proposed demonstration project may also include outreach and education
activities. Healthy Homes and Lead Technical Studies grantees are
expected to focus efforts on research projects. Applicants are required
to be specific as to the locations they are targeting their intervention
activities to occur and the residents, individuals or groups targeted
to receive interventions and the organizations targeted to continue
to operate effective intervention strategies over the life of the
award and hereafter. In addition to direct activities, administrative
costs and program planning and management costs of sub-grantees
and other sub-recipients are eligible for funding under this grant
program. Ineligible activities are: (1) Purchase of real property;
(2) Purchase or lease of equipment having a per unit cost in excess
of $5,000, unless prior written approval is obtained from HUD; (3)
Medical treatment costs.
ELIGIBILITY
REQUIREMENTS:
Applicant
Eligibility: Eligible applicants include: not-for-
profit institutions, for-profit firms (for-profit firms are not
allowed to profit from the project), State and local governments,
and Federally- recognized Indian Tribes in the United States. Federal
agencies and Federal employees are not eligible to apply for this
program.
Beneficiary
Eligibility: Healthy Homes Initiative grants
are intended to serve a broad array of beneficiaries including
homeowners, rental property owners, and public housing residents.
Credentials/Documentation:
Costs will be determined in accordance with OMB Circular No. A-87
for State, local and Federally-recognized Indian Tribal governments
and specific requirements of 24 CFR Part 85. Costs will be determined
for nonprofit and educational institutions in accordance with
OMB Circulars No. A-122 and No. A-21, respectively, and in accordance
with the requirements of 24 CFR Part 84.
Pre-application
Coordination: Not applicable. This program is
excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.
Application
Procedure: Once the competitive Notification
of Funding Availability is issued for fiscal year 2002 Healthy
Homes Demonstration Grants or Healthy Homes and Lead Technical
Studies grants, application kits can be obtained by calling the
SuperNOFA Information Center at 1-800-HUD-8929 or via TTY by calling
the toll-free Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.
Award
Procedure: HUD will review each application
to determine whether it is timely and meets all of the threshold
requirements. Non- responsive applications will be declared ineligible
for further consideration. Applications that meet all of the threshold
criteria will be eligible to be scored and ranked. Each eligible
application will be ranked based on the total number of points
allocated for each of the rating factors.
Deadlines:
To be considered for funding for the Healthy Homes Demonstration
Grant Program, the original and a four copies of the application
package should be submitted to the Department of Housing and Urban
Development, Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control,
Attn: Ellen R. Taylor, 451 7th Street, SW, Room P-3206, Washington,
DC 20410, no later than the date specified in the NOFA. Proposals
sent by overnight mail should also be addressed to the Department
of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Healthy Homes and
Lead Hazard Control, Attn: Ellen R. Taylor, 451 7th Street, SW,
Room P-3206, Washington, DC 20410. To be considered for funding
for the Healthy Homes and Lead Technical Studies Grant Program,
the original and a four copies of the application package should
be submitted to the Department of Housing and Urban Development,
Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control, Attn: Peter J.
Ashley, 451 7th Street, SW, Room P-3206, Washington, DC 20410,
no later than the date specified in the NOFA. Proposals sent by
overnight mail should also be addressed to the Department of Housing
and Urban Development, Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard
Control, Attn: Peter J. Ashley, 451 7th Street, SW, Room P-3206,
Washington, DC 20410. No hand-delivered applications will be accepted
for either the Healthy Homes Demonstration Grant Program or the
Healthy Homes and Lead Technical Studies Grant Program. Announcements
regarding availability of funding will be published in the Federal
Register.
Range
of Approval/Disapproval Time: Not Applicable.
Appeals:
Not applicable.
Renewals:
Not applicable.
ASSISTANCE
CONSIDERATIONS:
Formula
and Matching Requirements: There is no matching
requirement for the Healthy Homes Demonstration grant program or
the Healthy Homes and Lead Technical Studies grant program.
Length
and Time Phasing of Assistance: The Healthy
Homes Initiative grants (Demonstration; and Healthy Homes and
Lead Technical Studies) are awarded for up to a 3-year period
after the date of award. Payment is on a cost-reimbursable basis.
POST
ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Reports:
Quarterly financial management and performance reports are required
of participating jurisdictions.
Audits:
In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No. A-133 (Revised,
June 24, 1997), "Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit
Organizations," nonfederal entities that expend financial assistance
of $300,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a
program-specific audit conducted for that year. Nonfederal entities
that expend less than $300,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt
from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted
in Circular No. A-133.
Records:
Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative
Agreements to State, Local, and Federally-recognized Indian Tribal
governments.
FINANCIAL
INFORMATION:
Account
Identification: 86-0174-0-1-451.
Obligations:
(Grants) FY 01 $9,978,500; FY 02 est $10,000,000; and FY 03 est
$10,000,000.
Range
and Average of Financial Assistance:
Healthy Homes Demonstration and Education grants awarded in FY
2001 ranged from $435,510 to $937,879; the average was $727,924.
Healthy Homes Research grants awarded in 2001 ranged from $210,299
to $505,365; the average was $373,199. HUD will make about $5
million available in FY 2002 funds for the Healthy Homes Demonstration
Grant Program, and about $2.5 million for the Healthy Homes Technical
Studies, and about $1 million will be available for Lead Technical
Studies in Fiscal Year 2002 funds. HUD anticipates that approximately
six to eight demonstration grants will be awarded, ranging from
approximately $250,000 to approximately $1,000,000. HUD estimates
that approximately 3 to 6 Healthy Homes Technical Studies grants
will be awarded, ranging from $200,000 to $1 million each. HUD
estimates that 1 to 4 lead technical studies grants will be awarded,
ranging from $250,000 to $1 million.
Healthy Homes Initiative activities included hazard assessment and
mitigation projects, national and local public education efforts,
and housing-related hazard awareness training for health care and
day care professionals, environmental specialists, peer educators
and hazard remediation workers. Two grants specifically targeted
mold and moisture control in inner city housing, and through these
programs a visual assessment protocol, with linkages to work specifications,
was developed. Grants also examined research issues associated with
asthma, cost-effective cleaning methods for cockroach allergen,
and injury prevention. One education grant developed and launched
a web-based "E-house" that enabled parents to "walk from room to
room" identifying household pollutants, pathways of exposure and
finding alternative products and services for minimizing potential
health risks. Completed lead technical studies projects in the area
of lead hazard assessment and control have included: (a) developing
a system to test the performance of chemical spot test kits in detecting
lead in paint; (b) testing the efficacy of household detergents
and vacuum cleaners in cleaning lead-contaminated dust; (c) assessing
the effectiveness of low-cost interventions in reducing dust-lead
hazards in urban homes; (d) assessing exposure to, and cleaning
of, lead- contaminated dust in carpet, and, (e) testing the performance
of portable X-ray fluorescence analyzers (XRFs) in measuring lead
in dust- wipe samples. With fiscal year 2001 funds, HUD awarded
$5.8 million in grants to protect low-income families, especially
children, from health and safety hazards associated with housing.
Healthy Homes Initiative grants were awarded to: Public Health Department,
Seattle/King County, WA -$937,879; University of Alabama/Birmingham,
AL -- $850,000; Alameda County, CA -- $850,000; Medical & Health
Research Association of New York City, NY -- $500,000; City of Stamford,
CT -- $850,000; Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, AK -- $700,000;
Research Foundation of SUNY/Buffalo, NY -- $700,000; University
of Maryland/Baltimore, MD -- $435,510; Columbia University, NY --
$505,365; Radiation Monitoring Devices, Inc., MA -- $449,444; Duke
University, NC -- $405,217; University of Cincinnati --$448,789;
Air Quality Sciences, GA -- $210,299; and Research Triangle Institute,
NC -- $220,082.
REGULATIONS,
GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE:
Notice of Funding Availability and Application Kit are self-contained;
all necessary information is provided; no other regulations pertain.
There is some change in the content and direction of the NOFA that
is issued each year, dependent on SuperNOFA format, Congressional
direction, changes in emphasis among priorities, and improvements
based on experience with prior NOFAs. Guidelines and applicable
regulations are available through the internet at http://www.hud.gov/offices/lead.
INFORMATION
CONTACTS:
Regional
or Local Office: None.
Headquarters
Office: Ms. Ellen Taylor, Planning and Standards
Division, Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control, at
the address above. Telephone: (202) 755-1785, extension 116. E-mail:
Ellen_R._Taylor@hud.gov; or Ms. Curtissa Coleman, Grants Officer,
extension 119. E-mail: Curtissa_L._Coleman@hud.gov. These are
not toll-free numbers. Hearing- and speech-impaired persons may
access the above telephone numbers via TTY by calling the toll-free
Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339. Address for
Submitting Applications. For Mailed Applications. The address
for all applications is: Department of Housing and Urban Development,
Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control, Attn: Ellen R.
Taylor, 451 Seventh Street, SW, Room P3206, Washington, DC 20410.
No hand-delivered applications will be accepted.
Web
Site Address: http://www.hud.gov/offices/lead
EXAMPLES
OF FUNDED PROJECTS:
The prevalence of childhood asthma in Stamford, CT is 35% higher
than that of surrounding Fairfield County and hospital admissions
for asthma in Stamford exceed that of the state as a whole by 33%.
Stamford's asthma cases are clustered in areas of high density,
older stock multi-family housing that contains six inner- city census
tracks with asthma prevalence rates ranging as high as 24%, or nearly
200% greater than the overall city prevalence. The Stamford Health
& Social Services Department has made pediatric asthma its number
one health service priority and has developed a detailed pediatric
health database that contains every school-aged child in Stamford.
Through the use of GIS technology, asthmatic children in these six
census tracks will be identified for enrollment in the program.
It is anticipated that 300 children will be enrolled in Stamford's
Healthy Homes Demonstration project, and families of these children
will be offered comprehensive asthma interventions, such as tools
to reduce asthma triggers, a thorough home or building inspection
that focuses on code issues, and an opportunity for a scholarship
to an asthma summer camp. The project will build upon existing departmental
expertise in residential health and safety hazards to improve housing
and pediatric health in poor and inner city populations. The Joseph
M. Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University will use
HUD funds to examine the relationship between fungal extracellular
polysaccharides (EPS) specific IgG and environmental measures of
fungal EPS and evaluate the efficacy of using fungal EPS measurements
to predict respiratory outcomes in children. Dust will be collected
from the homes of four hundred pregnant Dominican and African American
women residing in New York City, and, at the time of delivery, fungal
specific IgG will be measured from the mother's serum. Measures
of fungal specific IgG will be measured in the children's serum
at age 2. A questionnaire will be also administered by phone every
3 months to determine medical history, wheezing and other respiratory
symptoms, hospitalizations and ER visits during the past 3 months.
The study will permit estimation of 1) a correlation between house
dust levels of fungal EPS and house dust levels of cockroach, dust
mite, and mouse allergens. (The measurement of allergens in dust
is funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National
Institute of Environmental Health Sciences); 2)rate ratios for exposure
to environmental levels of fungal EPS (both pre-natal and post-natal
measures) and the 3-year cumulative incidence of respiratory symptoms,
adjusting for other environmental and host factors; 3)rate ratios
for serum levels of specific fungal EPS IgG (measured when the child
is 2) and the incidence of respiratory symptoms.
CRITERIA
FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS:
Applications that meet all of the threshold requirements contained
in Section II(B) of the General Section of the SuperNOFA will be
eligible to be scored and ranked, based on the total number of points
allocated for each of the rating factors described below. The rating
factors and the total number of points available for each factor
are provided below. As indicated, the total points assigned to each
rating factor in FY 02 differs for the two programs. For Healthy
Homes Demonstration Grants, the rating factors are: (1) Capacity
of the Applicant and Relevant Organizational Experience (20 points);
(2) Need/Extent of the Problem (15 points); (3) Soundness of Approach
(45 points); (4) Leveraging Resources (10 points); and (5) Coordination,
Self-sufficiency and Sustainability (10 points). For Healthy Homes
and Lead Technical Studies, the rating factors are: Capacity of
the Applicant and Relevant Organizational Experience (30 points);
(2) Need/Extent of the Problem (10 points); (3) Soundness of Approach
(50 points); (4) Leveraging Resources (5 points); and (5) Coordination,
Self-sufficiency and Sustainability (5 points). In the Healthy Homes
Demonstration NOFA, two bonus points are available for eligible
activities proposed to be located in Federally designated Empowerment
Zones/Enterprise Communities, two bonus points are available for
activities/projects located in Federally designated Brownfields
Showcase Communities, and two bonus points are available for projects
submitted by the City of Dallas. HUD intends to make Healthy Homes
Demonstration awards to the highest ranked applications listed in
the Programs Section of the SuperNOFA within the limits of funding
availability. For the Healthy Homes and Lead Technical Studies,
awards will be made separately in rank order, within the limits
of funding availability for each program. If an applicant wishes
to apply under more than one category, then they must submit a separate
application for each category.
