WASHINGTON - Across the U.S., thousands of children live in foster care or are at risk of being placed with other families simply because their parents cannot afford a home. Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced $20 million in funding to local housing authorities to help more than 2,500 families stay together. It's estimated that the rental vouchers awarded today will reunite nearly 5,000 children with their parents or prevent them from entering foster care in the first place. (See attached chart ).