Bill Would Double Aid to L.A. Homeless : Social services: The change in HUD procedure would replace competition for grants with a formula to give funds to cities.

Legislation is pending before Congress that would nearly double the amount of federal funds Los Angeles receives to combat the problems associated with the city’s large homeless population.

Under the proposed law, the city would receive its share of Department of Housing and Urban Development funds according to a formula, thus eliminating the annual competition for grants that is required under the current system.

The city received $20.6 million in HUD funds for various homeless programs in fiscal 1993.

If Congress approves the proposed HUD modifications--part of an omnibus housing bill--the city would be in line for nearly $40 million.

Other municipalities throughout the state would benefit from the proposed changes as well. For instance, the total of HUD funds for all Orange County cities for next year would be $2.83 million, compared to $253,277 in fiscal 1993, HUD officials said.

Proponents say the new procedures will save the federal government administrative costs and provide the city with a more reliable source of money to provide shelter, food and counseling to the homeless.

Los Angeles officials estimate that between 80,000 and 100,000 homeless people are in Los Angeles County, most in the city.

Between fiscal 1987 and fiscal 1993, the city received an average of about $8 million from HUD for homeless programs.

“If this program is approved, it would give the city a better opportunity to address the problem,” said Gene Jackson, homeless coordinator for Los Angeles. “It appears to have the support of homeless advocates and city officials.”

To qualify for the money, city officials would be required to develop a comprehensive strategy in dealing with homeless people. They would also have to set up a local advisory board to review applications for funds from local nonprofit groups and assist the city in developing policies on homeless issues.

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The changes are part of a proposed overhaul of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 and reflect the views of HUD Secretary Henry G. Cisneros, who has placed a high priority on dealing with the problems of homeless Americans.

For 1995, the Clinton Administration is seeking $1 billion for the McKinney Act, up from $826 million budgeted this year. Provisions in the housing bill would consolidate several HUD programs into a new account, known as Homeless Assistance Grants. The money would be distributed to cities, states and regional homeless groups according to a formula based on the 1990 census.

The budget also includes $500 million in five-year rental certificates to help move 15,000 homeless families nationwide into subsidized private housing.

The House has already passed the housing bill that authorizes the new HUD procedures. A Senate committee has approved a similar measure, which is awaiting floor action. Appropriations bills have passed both houses.

“We’re confident that it will pass,” said Andrew M. Cuomo, an assistant secretary at HUD who previously worked as a provider of homeless services in New York.

“We’ve been working on the homeless problem for over a decade. We did some things right, we did some things wrong. One of the things we did wrong is never having a defined policy or an organized approach. Under this program, (Los Angeles) gets a substantial amount of money . . . and the control and authority to develop a system (to spend it).”

The proposal was first met skeptically by some of the nonprofit agencies that now deal directly with HUD through a competitive application process. Under the new plan, the nonprofit agencies would work through the city and the local advisory board.

“In the beginning we were opposed to it,” said Nan Roman, a vice president of Alliance to End Homelessness in Washington. “We were apprehensive that the money that once came to us would go to the city. And we didn’t know exactly what the local advisory board would do.”

But after helping to shape the legislation, the alliance supports its goals.

“It’s exciting to see how it will come out. It will be stimulating to local (homeless) planners and local providers,” Roman said.