State Technical Assistance

(For detailed state information click here.)

Technical assistance, the cornerstone of Alliance activities, was carefully designed to accomplish several critical outcomes:

a) opportunities for home ownership and personalized support throughout the country:

b) statewide systems change efforts based on individual state needs and aimed at alleviating barriers to home ownership;

c) cost-effective collaborations between the public and private sectors and reallocation of existing resource;

and d) rethinking home and support opportunities to reflect the beliefs upon which the Alliance is founded.

Technical assistance was provided as part of a statewide systems change initiative in 23 states during the first five years of the Alliance. With the help of the National Alliance Advisory Board, the Alliance recruited and selected up to five states to participate annually. State coalitions :

Convened a representative state steering committee;

developed a strategic plan for a statewide initiative on home ownership and control which included a pilot project through which people were assisted in purchasing homes;

received a technical assistance package from Alliance staff tailored to address each state's needs, opportunities and barriers;

supported implementation of the plan through training, consultation, and technical assistance on creative finance, legislative development and coalition-building provided by the Alliance;

and evaluated the success of the plan for creating home ownership opportunities and increased control of housing and support.

In addition to work at the state level, Alliance efforts were directed towards change at the federal level concerning policies and resources which affected the availability of housing and support. This work involved three primary efforts:

a) critical analysis of federal programs and policies (e.g Medicaid waiver program, HUD program) that affected the resources available for home ownership and personalized support;

b) policy forums on legislative advocacy and legislative developments:

and c:) grassroots community organizing and leadership development for people with disabilities.