HUD Unveils Initiative to Replace the HOPE VI Program

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) unveiled a proposal designed to replace the HOPE VI program. The new initiative, the Choice Neighborhood Initiative, would build on the framework established by the HOPE VI program by incorporating a broader spectrum of disciplines in the revitalization effort. This includes housing, transportation, education, energy and the private sector. HOPE VI provides grants to housing agencies to revitalize severely distressed public housing. While it is not a “neighborhood revitalization” program, HOPE VI projects have provided the impetus for broader neighborhood revitalization.

The new proposal calls for $250 million in competitive grants to be awarded to eligible grantees which includes local governments, public housing agencies, community development corporations, assisted housing owners, and other for-profit and nonprofit entities. While the new proposal has not been formally introduced into legislation, the Senate’s 2010 fiscal year HUD appropriations bill does include funding for the initiative. The Senate bill contains $250 million for the initiative with $165 million reserved for public housing agencies. The House appropriations bill calls for $250 million for HOPE VI. Final passage of an appropriations bill will not be determined until late December. A continuing resolution (CR) is in effect until December 18 which is keeping the Federal government operating at the 2009 funding levels.

There are two significant differences between the Choice Initiative and Hope VI. First, the Choice Initiative requires one-for-one replacement of all public and assisted housing affected by projects funded under this initiative. Second, the new initiative allows displaced residents to return to the site after revitalization is complete if they desire to return. There is no guarantee under HOPE VI.

In reporting on the Choice Initiative, the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) expressed concern that the HUD proposal does not clarify if the department’s Office of Public and Indian Housing or its Office of Community Planning and Development would administer the program. NAHRO also said there needs to be clarification on the role federal departments such as transportation and education would play in the implementation of this initiative.

The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), a vocal critic of HOPE VI, wants to make certain there are stronger provisions in place protecting displaced families and those wishing to return when the project is completed. NLIHC would also like to see more specificity in the definitions used to determine what projects are eligible for funding. NLIHC has a copy of the legislative language for review. Click here to review the language. According to NLIHC, HUD is accepting comments on the legislation. You can send an email to HUD.

Homeless Veterans Twice the Rate of the General Population

A recently released report says the rate of homeless veterans is twice the rate of the general population. According to the report released by the Homeless Research Institute, the rate of homeless veterans is 58 for every 10,000 veterans. The report further states that women are increasing in the number of veterans who are homeless and that a large number of veterans returning from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are receiving homeless services from the Department of Veterans Administration (VA).

The report, Vital Mission: Ending Homelessness Among Veterans, is an update to a 2007 report detailing the plight of homeless veterans. Both reports use VA data.

The report’s findings show:

- The number of female veterans is higher among younger cohorts;

- Homeless veterans tend to be between the ages of 35 and 54 even though 40 percent of them are 665 and older;

- Four percent of the homeless veteran population served in Afghanistan and Iraq; and,

- African-Americans are overrepresented among veterans as they are in the general population.

The report offers the following recommendations:

- The VA needs to create a homeless prevention and rapid re-housing program.

- Continue expanding the HUD and Veteran Administration’s Supportive Housing Program.

- Ensure an adequate supply of affordable housing for veterans with low-incomes;

- Enhance and bring to scale existing VA homelessness programs.

Mayors Release a Report on Anti-Hunger in 24 Cities

The United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) released a report describing anti-hunger initiatives in 24 cities. The report, Childhood Anti-Hunger Programs in 24 Cities, was prepared in collaboration with Sodexo USA. Many of the initiatives are funded with U.S. Department of Agriculture funds and supported by private organizations such as Feeding America.

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Renters not immune to foreclosure crisis
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How to Do a Second Stimulus
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Senator Receives the Congressional Gold Medal

Former Senator Edward W. Brooke III was presented with the Congressional Gold Medal in a ceremony on the Capital Rotunda October 28. Brooke, a strong advocate for public housing, was given the award two days after his 90th birthday.

Brooke is best known as the author of a provision, called the Brooke amendment, which limited the income paid by public housing residents to no more than 30 percent of their income. Efforts to replace this provision have generated a great deal of controversy within the low-income housing advocacy community. Advocates strongly support his provision as a vital tool to keep public and assisted housing affordable to low-income families. Public housing authorities contend it reduces the incentive to work since a family’s rent is tied to the income they earn. They contend, for example, if a family’s income doubles then their rent will double. The differences in approaches to rental policies continue to be a major obstacle to reaching a consensus on the best approach to provide affordable housing for low-income families.

Brooke is the first African-American senator elected by popular vote. He is a native of Washington, DC and attended Howard Univeristy. He was known as a strong advocate for affordable housing, fair housing, health care and women’s rights. He was also a vocal opponent of the Vietnam War.

He was nominated for the award by the late Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA). The award is given by the U.S. Congress. It is the highest civilian given by Congress. Among the dignitaries in attendance was President Barack Obama, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD), and House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH).

NLC Report Highlights Local Innovations to Help Families and Children

The National League of Cities has released a report which reviews innovative solutions by local governments to help families and children and offers insights into what cities can do in the future.

The report, The State of City Leadership for Children and Families, was released in mid-October before more than 300 municipal leaders who attended the 2009 National Summit on Your City’s Families in Boston.

The report looks at municipal efforts to help families with after-school programs, community wellness initiatives, expanding access to child care and early childhood development programs, promoting innovation and accountability in education, increasing opportunities for the economic success of families and children and being more aggressive to curb youth violence.

CDFI Advisory Boar to Meet in Washington, DC

The Community Development Financial Institution Advisory Board is scheduled to hold its next meeting, Monday, November 16 in Washington, DC at the U.S. Department of the Treasury. There will be limited seating for the public (approximately 50 available seats) on a first come, first serve basis. Any member of the pubic wishing to attend mu st contact the CDFI Fund’s Office of Legislative and External Affairs by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday, November 11, 2009 by e-mail to inform the CDFI Fund of your desire to attend the meeting and to provide the following information which is required to facilitate your entry to the facility: name as it appears on a government issued identification; date of birth; and social security number. Any questions can be directed to Bill Luecht in the Office of Legislative and External Affairs by calling (202) 622-8042.

In other CDFI news, CDFI Fund Director Donna Gambrell delivered the keynote address at the National Community Investment Fund’s (NCIF) Annual Development Banking Conference in Chicago in early November. She said the NCFI network is leading the way “in developing ways to measure social performance.”

“NCIF’s Social Performance Metrics allow CDFI banks to better demonstrate their effectiveness and therefore, demand more resources,” she said. “This is one area in which I hope that strengthened CDFI networks will help diffuse knowledge and best practices and ultimately allow more CDFI banks to show in a concrete way their track record of generating economic opportunity for individuals and small businesses and providing essential community services.” She commended NCIF for its emphasis on “developing common standards for thinking about social impact.”

“By creating industry standards for communication of social impact, Social Performance Metrics valuations enhance the industry’s ability to attract additional capital to the sector, as well as help identify community development-oriented banks that are eligible to be certified as CDFIs,” she said.

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Magazine Inducts Five into its Hall of Fame

Renee Lewis Glover, President and CEO of the Atlanta Housing Authority, is one of five inductees to Affordable Housing Magazine’s Hall of Fame. Glover is credited with changing the face of public housing through the agency’s willingness to demolished large tracts pf public housing and replacing it with mixed-income developments.

While receiving her fair share of criticism from public housing advocates, she has transformed public housing in Atlanta and serves as a model for other housing authorities nationally which have replicated her success in communities large and small.

Joining Glover in the Hall of Fame are Sister Lillian Murphy, CEO of Mercy Housing; John McEvoy, former executive director of the National Council of State Housing Agencies; and posthumously George Knight, former director of the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (now NeighborWorks America) and I. Donald Turner the first executive director for Bridge Housing in San Francisco.

Murphy led Mercy Housing from its base in Denver when it started with 220 units and now has 37,000 units it has helped develop, finance or preserve. It is currently serving more than 124,000 people. It also owns more than 14,000 units scattered across 250 affordable housing properties.

McEvoy was the force behind ensuring the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) became permanent and is indexed to inflation. He spent many years in Washington working on Capitol Hill and as a lobbyist in a Washington, DC-law firm before spending 12 years with NCSHA.

Knight helped grow NRC to where it was helping ten times more families under his leadership according to a tribute submitted by Charles Gould to the magazine. Knight died from cancer in 2008. According to a tribute submitted by Rick Holliday, Terner was a force in pursuit of affordable housing for those in need. He died in a plane crash in 1996 which also took the life of Ron Brown, who was the Secretary of Commerce at the time of the crash.

Congress Still Hasn’t Finalized Funding for 2010

It appears Congress will pass another continuing resolution to keep the government open until the end of the year until issues surrounding appropriations bills are resolved. Before any action is taken on the FY 2010 appropriations bills, Congress till needs to resolve how earmarks are going to be treated. Earmarks are special projects inserted into the appropriations bill by Members of Congress to fund their special projects. Some members want to subject these special projects to competitive bidding. A continuing resolution is a legislative mechanism which allows the government to remain open at 2009 funding levels until a new funding bill is approved by Congress and signed by the president.

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Report Says City Fiscal Conditions Expected to Worsened in 2009

A report released by the National League of Cities (NLC) states cities will have a harder time meeting their fiscal needs in 2010 as a result of the nation’s economic condition.

The report, City Fiscal Conditions in 2009, states that a decline in revenue from income and sales tax collections will result in significant budget gaps in 2010. These sources of local revenue typically decline first when jobs losses increase and the resulting purchasing of goods decreases.

According to the report, property taxes are beginning to slow as housing values more closely reflect the economic downturn. The reports states it usually takes 18 months to several years before the revenues generated by local governments are impacted by brooder economic conditions. The report states that local governments can expect a slow recovery beginning at some point in 2010.

The City Fiscal Conditions Survey is a national mail and online survey of finance officers in U.S. cities conducted in the spring-summer of each year by NLC. This is the twenty-fourth edition of the survey which began in 1986.

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California’s Zigzag on Welfare Rules Worries Experts
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Continuing Resolution Signed by President; Debate on Fate of Appropriation Bills Continues

President Barack Obama signed into law a Continuing Resolution which will keep the federal government operating until October 31. This will give Congress more time to finalize action on the various appropriation bills which fund the federal government. According to congressional sources, Members of Congress are debating the way in which earmarks are directed to private companies. Some members want earmarks targeted to private companies to be subject to competitive bidding.

“Earmarks” are provisions placed by Members of Congress in appropriation bills which direct federal funds to a specific project or entity within that member’s district or state. The earmark can be placed in a House or Senate appropriations bill or in both. Action on the appropriation bills is expected to be completed before the end of the month.

NAHRO Celebrate 75th Anniversary, Elects New President

The National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) is celebrating its 75th anniversary during its annual conference http://www.nahro.org/conferences/natprogram.cfm held in Washington, D.C. October 4-6. During the conference, the organization will formally announce its new leadership team. Akinola Popoola, Executive Director of the Opelika Housing Authority in Opelika, Alabama, will be installed as the new president. Betsey Martens, co-Executive Director of the Boulder Housing Partners in Boulder, Colorado, will be the Senior Vice President.

CDFI Fund Announces Awards

The Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Funds announced the issuance of $52.7 million in awards to 62 organizations serving economically distressed communities. Donna J. Gambrill, Executive Director of the Fund, made the announcement in Milwaukee, Wisconsin October 2.

CDFI also announced it was extending the deadline for submitting a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a new Capacity-Building Initiative until October 30. The initiative is designed to expand the technical assistance and training opportunities for CDFIs nationwide. The volume of technical questions concerning the RFP was so high it was determined extending the deadline for submission was the best course of action to take.

Hispanic Advocates Call for Full Count of its Community, Initiate a New Grassroots Campaign

A coalition of Hispanic organizations and advocacy groups joined the United States Census Director Robert Groves October 1 to announce a new initiative, !HAGASE CONTAR! (It’s Time, Make Yourself Count), to encourage Hispanics to be counted during the 2010 census.

The coalition is seeking to ensure Hispanics are accurately counted n the 2010 census. The campaign seeks to enhance the Bureau’s efforts to count Hispanics through a sustained an aggressive community education initiative to mobilize hundreds of local organizations and the Spanish-language media. It is estimated Hispanics were undercounted by three percent in 2000 resulting in a loss of billions of dollars to the Hispanic community.

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