Description

1. PurposeThe Healthy Homes Production Program (HHP) is part of HUD’s overall Healthy Homes Initiative launched in 1999. The program takes a comprehensive approach to addressing multiple childhood diseases and injuries in the home by focusing on housing-related hazards in a coordinated fashion, rather than addressing a single hazard at a time. The program builds upon HUD’s successful Lead Hazard Control programs to expand the Department’s efforts to address a variety of high-priority environmental health and safety hazards. Applicants receiving a Healthy Homes Production Award will be expected to accomplish the following objectives:Maximize both the number of vulnerable residents protected from housing-related environmental health and safety hazards and the number of housing units where these hazards are controlled;Identify and remediate housing-related health and safety hazards in privately owned, low-income rental and/or owner-occupied housing, especially in units and/or buildings where families with children, older adults 62 years and older, or families with persons with disabilities reside;Promote cost-effective and efficient healthy home methods and approaches that can be replicated and sustained;Support public education and outreach that furthers the goal of protecting children and other vulnerable populations from housing-related health and safety hazards;Build local capacity to operate sustainable programs that will prevent and control housing-related environmental health and safety hazards in low- and very low-income residences, and develop a professional workforce that is trained in healthy homes assessment and principles;Promote integration of this grant program with housing rehabilitation, property maintenance, weatherization, healthy homes initiatives, local lead-based paint hazard control programs, health and safety programs, and energy efficiency improvement activities and programs;Build and enhance partner resources to develop the most cost-effective methods for identifying and controlling key housing-related environmental health and safety hazards;Promote collaboration, data sharing, and targeting between health and housing departments;Ensure to the greatest extent feasible that job training, employment, contracting, and other economic opportunities generated by this grant will be directed to low- and very-low-income persons, particularly those who are recipients of government assistance for housing, and to businesses that provide economic opportunities to low- and very low-income persons in the area in which the project is located. For more information, see 24 CFR 135 (Section 3);Further environmental justice, the fair treatment, and meaningful involvement of all people within the target communities regardless of race, color, national origin, disability, religion, sex (including sexual orientation and gender identify), familial status or income regarding the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies; k. Comply with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (“Section 504”) and its implementing regulations at 24 CFR part 8, as well as Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act when applicable. Each of these prohibits discrimination based on disability. In addition to these requirements, recipients have an obligation to comply with the Fair Housing Act, including the obligation to affirmatively further fair housing, and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Note that besides being an “objective” of this NOFO, the obligation to affirmatively further fair housing is also a civil right related statutory and program requirement.