Federal Funding Changes: What It Means + How You Can Help
November 21, 2025
The federal government – through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) – provides the largest amount of public funding for homeless services in the Greater Richmond region. For more than 25 years, the Greater Richmond Continuum of Care (GRCoC) has coordinated federal funding locally. Recently, HUD announced changes to how it will award future money. HUD’s new approach and priorities will have major implications for our community.
This blog post provides a high-level overview of the situation, what it means for the Richmond region, and how you can get involved.
What’s Happening?
- HUD proposed drastic changes to federal funding for homeless services.
- Historically, the federal government has partnered with local communities to develop local programs to address homelessness in their area. These programs are tailored to the specific needs of the community and based on extensive community input.
- The proposed changes undercut that local community process. HUD is severely limiting how communities can spend federal funds on homeless services.
What Does This Mean for Our Region?
- By changing how the Richmond region can spend federal money on homeless services, many programs that work will be forced to wind down.
- Two-thirds of housing programs for those experiencing homelessness in our region will be shut due to these abrupt changes in federal funding.
- Our region also wouldn’t be permitted to spend these federal funds on emergency shelter.
- This means that people will lose their current housing, have nowhere to go, and our community won’t be able to offer them the support they need.
- Ultimately, we’ll see a dramatic rise in unsheltered homelessness in our region, starting next winter.
What Can I Do to Help?
- Congress can still act to stop these funding changes or at the very least give local communities more time to plan for the changes.
- Contact your U.S. Representative and Senators. Tell them that homelessness matters to you and you want our local community to continue to make decisions about homelessness locally.
- Sign up the
GRCoC newsletter to stay engaged and updated on what’s happening.
Want More Info?
- If you’d like to learn more about the changes to HUD funding and what our community is doing, attend an information session on Monday (11/24) from 3-4pm or Tuesday (11/25) from 9-10am.
- If you have additional questions or want further details, email GRCOC@homewardva.org.
- The National Alliance to End Homelessness has a number of resources on its website, including a helpful toolkit.
Combining Compassion and Accountability
Our region's collaborative network of homeless service providers, The Greater Richmond Continuum of Care (GRCoC) , supports solutions to homelessness that are focused on getting our neighbors off the street and on to pathways to a permanent home. Why is this approach considered a highly effective method for solving homelessness in our region and across the country?
As more and more people in our region face housing instability and are pushed into homelessness, the demand for homeless services is higher than ever before.
Greater Richmond Continuum of Care Secures Over 9.3 Million in Federal Funds to Address Homelessness
The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced that the Greater Richmond region was awarded $9.39 million in federal funding. That money includes an increase of $1.57 million in new project funds for the Greater Richmond Continuum of Care (GRCoC) to support our most vulnerable neighbors across the region experiencing homelessness.
In every community, there are moments when resources simply aren't enough to meet the needs of all those who are struggling. This reality can often lead to frustration, especially when we feel powerless in resolving an issue, particularly one as urgent as homelessness. However, it's important to remember that even when we can't solve everything at once, there are always concrete steps we can take to make a real difference.
The federal government, through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), provides a substantial portion of funding for homeless services in our region. In fact, the vast majority of public dollars used to support our most vulnerable neighbors is allocated through a HUD funding process called the Continuum of Care Program.
Compassionate Accountability
Letters of request are due to the CoC by 5 pm, Monday, April 29.