RHP Overview

Overview

The Pilot Program to Help Individuals in Recovery from a Substance Use Disorder Become Stably Housed (Recovery Housing Program, or RHP) was authorized under Section 8071 of the Support for Patients and Communities (SUPPORT) Act. HUD published its formula in the Federal Register on April 17, 2019 (84 FR 16027), identifying the 25 eligible grantees and allocation percentages.

RHP supports individuals in recovery on their path to self-sufficiency. By providing stable housing to support recovery, RHP aims to support efforts for independent living. More specifically, RHP provides the funds to develop housing or maintain housing for individuals. To maximize and leverage these resources, grantees are encouraged to coordinate RHP-funded projects with other federal and non-federal assistance related to substance abuse, homelessness and at-risk of homelessness, employment, and other wraparound services.

View the Support for Patients and Communities (SUPPORT) Act.

Grantee Eligibility and Funding Formula

The SUPPORT Act has specific criteria HUD used to establish the formula for RHP program eligibility. Those criteria limit the number of eligible grantees to states and the District of Columbia. To receive funding, grantees must have an age-adjusted rate of drug overdose deaths above the national overdose mortality rate. The national age adjusted overdose mortality rate in 2016 was 19.8 per 100,000 persons. There were 24 states, as well as the District of Columbia, above that national rate.

The funding formula is need-based, with grantees having greater need getting more funding. The formula is also based on rates of problems rather than on shares of the count of problems. The SUPPORT Act; Establishment of Funding Formula notice provides the percent share of the appropriated funds allocated to the 25 grantees. The formula is calculated using the following factors:

Highest average rates of unemployment, which accounts for 15 percent of the allocation (based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for calendar years 2013-2017)
Lowest labor force participation, which accounts for 15 percent of the allocation (based on the participation rates, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for calendar years 2013-2017)
Highest age-adjusted rates of drug overdose deaths, which accounts for 70 percent of the allocation (based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for 2016)

RHP grant funds should be treated as Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds under Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.). HUD waived and specified alternative requirements to certain provisions under Title I except for requirements related to fair housing, nondiscrimination, labor standards, the environment, and requirements that activities benefit persons of low- and moderate-income upon a finding that such a waiver is necessary to expedite or facilitate the use of such funds.

View the Notice of FY 2020 Allocations, Waivers, and Alternative Requirements for the Pilot Recovery Housing Program [FR-6225-N-01].

FY 2020 Funding

On December 20, 2019, the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020 (Public Law 116-94) was signed and made $25,000,000 available for activities authorized under Section 8071. The SUPPORT Act authorized the use of up to two percent ($500,000) of the funds for technical assistance to grantees.

Individuals Looking for Assistance

RHP funding will go to state agencies, not directly to individuals. If you are an individual struggling with a substance use disorder, visit FindTreatment.gov where you can find thousands of state-licensed providers who specialize in treating substance use disorders, addiction, and mental illness.