CCERA to temporarily suspend accepting applications

Due to the high volume of pre-application packets received at the Commonwealth COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance Program and given the limited amount of federal funding available for this type of assistance, the CCERA management has decided to suspend accepting new applications starting Feb.14, 2022. 

According to Epiphanio E. Cabrera Jr., who is the administrator for the Office of Grants Management, “For ERA1 funding, the program has an available funding slightly above $3 million, and there are still many clients that are newly applying and those that are waiting for their rental assistance to be fully processed. We need to make sure that we have enough funding available to assist those that have already applied and are deemed eligible.”

“Currently, our CCERA case workers, inspectors, auditors, and coordinators are working actively to ensure that our clients, especially those with a 30% to 50% AMI (Area Median Income) level are quickly reviewed and assisted. Assistance to our clients include rental arrears, prospective rent, utility assistance for renters, and housing stability assistance. An average of 12 to 15 months of rental assistance is provided to eligible clients or households,” Cabrera added. 

CCERA is still experiencing some issues with businesses that lack a MUNIS vendor number and those lacking a business license. Thus many of these rental invoices are not processed for payment because we cannot load an invoice entry without sufficient vendor clearance. For MUNIS vendor assistance, visit the Division of Procurement Services on the first floor of the Horiguchi Building in Garapan or call 670-664-1508. 

CCERA is strongly encouraging the public that would like to submit an application, or those who have not provided the required documentation for their existing application, to do so before the suspension deadline of Feb. 14, 2022, by 4:30pm. All applications must be completed and submitted by the deadline.

Furthermore, with the dwindling funds, CCERA will soon suspend its utility voucher assistance. A pre-payment of $325,000 was made to the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. at the end of December 2021, and once these funds have been exhausted by eligible clients and households, the utility voucher assistance will cease. 

“This general notice is expected because emergency assistance funding is not limitless; the program does not want individuals or households to be caught off guard when this assistance abruptly ends. Financial planning is crucial, especially in times of an ongoing health pandemic. CCERA urges its clients to plan ahead and start seeking other sources of financial housing assistance. Subsequently, should additional funding become available, CCERA will resume its application intake,” Cabrera stated.

The CCERA program has assisted the community with over $6 million in housing rental assistance and over $500,000 in utility assistance since May 2021. Over 1,200 households have been assisted during this timeframe. “The progressive assistance to our renting community is a testament to the hardworking staff and management at the CCERA Program,” Cabrera said. 

The understanding, patience, and cooperation of the public is greatly appreciated as CCERA tries its best to assist the community with its emergency rental needs. For more information, contact the CCERA program at 670-682-7368 (RENT). (PR)