As of last week, almost half of the 99 Wrangell applications for financial help with rent and utilities had been approved or were pending a final decision, according to the state agency running the federally funded program.
The Alaska Housing Finance Corp. received about 30,000 applications for assistance from across the state for $200 million in federal pandemic relief funds available under Alaska’s state and municipal allocation.
The program closed to applications March 5, and AHFC staff and its contractor have been working to verify income information, rent and utility bills, and eligibility to start moving out the money. The payments go directly to landlords and utilities.
As of May 12, AHFC had sent out $20.3 million to more than 5,000 eligible households, reported Daniel Delfino, the agency’s director of planning and program development.
“In total, we have approved 9,500 applications for payment. There was a bit of a lag in checks getting out for approved applicants, but the teams have been aggressively rebalancing staff to close that gap and the distance between those two parts of the program is closing daily,” Delfino said in an email May 12.
The housing agency had said it would process applications in batches, giving priority to people who earn less than half the area’s median income and who have been unemployed at least 90 days. Half the annual median income in Wrangell is about $28,500 a year.
Of the 99 applications from Wrangell households, as of last week 27 had been approved for payment, 21 were pending review, and 41 were in the “active” queue to verify information, according to Stacy Barnes, AHFC’s director of governmental relations and public affairs.
Only 7 of the 99 applications from Wrangell had been rejected or determined ineligible as of last week, Barnes said. A few more withdrew their application or did not response to requests for more information.
The 99 applications from Wrangell represent almost 10% of the community’s total number of households, according to U.S. Census data.
AHFC is managing the state’s share of the $25 billion federal housing aid program approved by Congress in December. The program is open only to renters, not homeowners. The agency also is working with several regional housing authorities to administer additional rental relief funds for tribal members, Barnes said.
Past-due rent and utilities will be paid first under the program, with future rent and utilities distributed in three-month increments as recipients submit current financial information to verify their continuing need.
AHFC’s call center was receiving between 400 and 500 calls per day, Delfino told Anchorage TV station KTUU earlier this month, with more than 130 workers taking calls and reviewing applications.
AHFC sends qualification letters to prescreened applicants verifying their eligibility, and Delfino said the letters can help landlords know that the money is on the way.
This is the second housing assistance program managed by AHFC since last summer — and a third is on the way. The American Rescue Plan, signed into law by President Joe Biden in March, allocates more than $180 million in additional aid for Alaska homeowners and renters, Barnes said. Distributing that money requires legislative approval.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy last week called a special session for August for lawmakers to approve spending the latest round of federal relief ad — if legislators are unable to get the work done before then.
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