CNHA to Administer $1.66 Million to Fight Poverty

OHA announced Friday that the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA) is its selection to administer a $1.66-million grant to provide emergency financial assistance to low-income Native Hawaiians statewide.

“So many of our beneficiaries are scraping to get by,” said OHA Colette Machado. “For many, all it takes is one missed paycheck, one unexpected health scare, one unfortunate accident to push them to the streets. This grant will provide funding to help those individuals cope with these emergencies and stay in their homes.”

The purpose of the Emergency Financial Assistance grant is to support OHA’s Strategic Priority of Economic Self-Sufficiency, an OHA release said.

The grant is intended to assist Native Hawaiians statewide, whose incomes are at or below 300% of Hawaiʻi Federal Poverty Guidelines, to address unexpected crises such as loss of income, loss of employment by layoff, debilitating illness or injury or other unanticipated circumstances. With this grant, CNHA will provide qualified individuals and families with emergency funding to stabilize their situation.

The grant will also provide financial literacy counseling, case management services and referrals to other service providers to help Native Hawaiians get on a path to long-term economic stability. CNHA plans to partner with Hawaiian Community Assets and Solutions Pacific to provide comprehensive statewide coverage, the release said.

The two-year grant period begins Jan. 1, 2020 and ends Dec. 31, 2021.