By Tony McVeigh
Frankfort, KY – Programs that assist the homeless in Kentucky should soon be sharing nearly $19 million dollars in federal stimulus money. Governor Steve Beshear says the state has already applied for the money, based on last year's statewide survey that found 8,100 homeless individuals in Kentucky.
The federal government set aside one-point-five billion dollars for the homeless prevention and rapid re-housing program. Kentucky has applied for over 18-point-five million dollars to implement the program in our state.
A new point-in-time survey conducted in late January found nearly six thousand homeless in Kentucky, but the 24-hour count was interrupted by the ice storm and had to be rescheduled in many parts of the state. Survey volunteers believe the disruption likely adversely affected the count.