BISMARCK, ND (NewsDakota.com) – The North Dakota Industrial Commission approved an allocation of almost $200,000 today through Helping Housing Across North Dakota (HAND).

The program addresses the housing rehab needs of lower-income individuals and families by providing grants to targeted community programs. North Dakota Housing Finance Agency (NDHFA) administers the program.

“Helping HAND ensures North Dakotans of limited means continue to have a safe and affordable place to call home,” said Commission members in a joint statement. The Industrial Commission, consisting of Gov. Doug Burgum as chairman, Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring and Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem, oversees NDHFA.

The 2020 grant distribution follows:

§ Community Action Partnership, Dickinson/Williston, $15,479.

§ Community Action Partnership, Minot, $20,489.

§ Dakota Prairie Community Action Agency, Devils Lake, $15,505.

§ Red River Valley Community Action, Grand Forks, $21,441.

§ Southeastern ND Community Action Agency, Fargo, $42,709.

§ Community Action Region VI, Jamestown, $11,697.

§ Community Action Program Region VII, Bismarck, $27,080.

§ Spirit Lake Tribal Housing, Fort Totten, $14,666.

§ Trenton Indian Service Area, Trenton, $14,666.

§ Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, Belcourt, $14,666.

§ Rebuilding Together, Fargo, $800.

§ Rebuilding Together, Mandan, $800.

Helping HAND assistance is provided to households with incomes that do not exceed 80 percent of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s median for the county in which their home is located. Matching funds of at least 25 percent of the total project costs are required to access the grant dollars.

“Through Helping HAND, North Dakota Housing Finance Agency has allocated over $6 million in agency earnings since the program began in 1993 to assist more than 7,500 lower-income individuals and families statewide,” said Dave Flohr, NDHFA interim executive director.

NDHFA is a self-supporting state agency dedicated to making housing affordable for all North Dakotans. More information on the agency and the affordable housing programs it administers is available online at www.ndhfa.org.