ESTABLISHMENT OF DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.

SEC. 421. ESTABLISHMENT OF DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM. (a) In General.— The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall carry out a program in accordance with the provisions of this subtitle to develop innovative approaches for providing supportive housing, especially to deinstitutionalized homeless individuals, 101 STAT. 499homeless families with children, and homeless individuals with mental disabilities and other handicapped homeless persons. (b) Purposes.— The demonstration program carried out under this subtitle shall be designed to determine— (1) the cost of acquisition, rehabilitation, acquisition and rehabilitation, or leasing of existing structures for the provision of supportive housing; (2) the cost of operating such housing and providing supportive services to the residents of such housing; (3) the social, financial, and other advantages of such housing as a means of assisting homeless individuals; and (4) the lessons that the provision of such housing might have for the design and implementation of housing programs that serve homeless individuals and families with special needs, particularly deinstitutionalized homeless individuals, homeless amilies with children, and homeless individuals with mental disabilities and other handicapped homeless persons. The Secretary shall administer the program under this subtitle and award assistance to applicants in a manner that clearly demonstrates that a central purpose and major funding priority of the program is to provide supportive housing for deinstitutionalized homeless individuals and other homeless individuals with mental disabilities.