Included in  Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s recent plan to end veteran homelessness is a $600,000 grant for specialists to connect unemployed veterans with jobs.
Last week Malloy unveiled the $1.4 million legislative initiative, which seeks to increase residential opportunities for veterans and end veteran homelessness by 2015. An estimated 4,500 people are homeless in Connecticut, 11 percent of which are veterans.
“We know that homelessness and unemployment are intrinsically linked and part of a terrible downward spiral that captures too many people, especially veterans,” Malloy said in a press release Tuesday. “By working together with our public and private sector partners and investing in giving Connecticut”™s veterans access to steady employment and safe housing, we will move our state significantly closer toward ensuring that every veteran can get back on their feet, back under a roof, and back to work.”
About 40 percent of the initiative’s funding would go to area housing agencies to hire job placement specialists trained to assist veterans in securing employment. The remaining funding would be spent on additional support services for at-risk veterans in Newington, Conn., security deposit assistance and a review of existing state facilities that could be converted into spaces for veterans’ use. About $1.4 million in matching federal grants is available for facility improvements.Â
