Access a pdf version of this HAC News. • Budget proposes level funding for most USDA rural housing programs, none for MPR • HUD budget requests cuts for many programs in FY 2011 • Rules proposed for new rural water/wastewater predevelopment grant program • USDA announces self-help forums

February 3, 2010
Vol. 39, No. 3

BUDGET PROPOSES LEVEL FUNDING FOR MOST USDA RURAL HOUSING PROGRAMS, NONE FOR MPR. The Obama Administration’s budget for fiscal year 2011, released February 1, zeroes out initiatives that were created in past appropriations legislation but never authorized, including USDA’s rural rental preservation demonstration program, known as MPR. Section 515 rental housing would be increased from $69 to $95 million; Section 515 funds can be used for some preservation activities, but not all that have been available through MPR. The budget does fund vouchers for tenants whose rents rise because of rental prepayment, and Section 521 Rental Assistance for new Section 515 rental and Section 514/516 farm labor housing. Most other RD rural housing programs would remain at FY 2010 levels. For more details visit https://ruralhome.org.

(a) For Section 502 direct, $1.12 billion in regular appropriations and $1 billion from the Recovery Act. For Section 502 guaranteed, $6.2 and $10.5 billion.

HUD BUDGET REQUESTS CUTS FOR MANY PROGRAMS IN FY 2011. The Administration’s HUD budget would increase homelessness programs, rental assistance, the Public Housing Operating Fund, and HOPWA, while cutting CDBG, HOME, Indian housing, Sections 202 and 811, fair housing, and the Public Housing Capital Fund. The Housing Trust Fund would be funded at $1 billion. For the first time since the late 1990s a President’s budget proposes to eliminate SHOP. No funding is requested for the new Rural Innovation Fund, which replaced the Rural Housing and Economic Development Program in 2010 appropriations, at HUD’s urging. The budget also proposes new initiatives on “Transforming Rental Assistance” and “Catalytic Investments.” Details are at https://ruralhome.org.

(a) 2009 levels include Recovery Act funds. (b) New program for economic development and gap financing for community revitalization. (c) New program for rental preservation, efficiency and resident choice. (d) Demonstration, initially proposed in FY 2010 budget to replace HOPE VI. (e) New initiative to combat mortgage fraud and to transform ways in which HUD does business.

RULES PROPOSED FOR NEW RURAL WATER/WASTEWATER PREDEVELOPMENT GRANT PROGRAM. Comments are due February 22 on draft regulations for USDA’s new Special Evaluation Assistance for Rural Communities and Households (SEARCH) program for financially distressed rural communities with populations below 2,500. Nonprofits, public agencies, and tribes will be eligible for grants to cover water and waste disposal project feasibility studies, designs, and applications. See Federal Register, 1/22/10 or https://www.regulations.gov. Contact Anita O’Brien, RD, 202-690-3789, anita.obrien@usda.gov.

USDA ANNOUNCES SELF-HELP FORUMS. Rural Development will hold forums on its self-help program around the country between February and June, with an emphasis on the Technical and Management Assistance contracts under Section 523. See Federal Register, 2/2/10 and https://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rhs/Admin/2010SelfHelpForums.htm. Contact Debra S. Arnold, RD, 202-720-1366, debra.arnold@wdc.usda.gov. Watch for additional details at https://ruralhome.org as they become available.

Housing Assistance Council
1025 Vermont Ave., NW, Suite 606, Washington DC 20005
(202) 842-8600 | hac@ruralhome.org | www.ruralhome.org

Access a pdf version of this HAC News. • Housing Trust Fund and public housing included in House jobs bill • House votes to extend tax credit exchange and New Markets Tax Credit for one year • HUD reminds PHAs and others of nondiscrimination and accessibility requirements • HUD income verification rule finalized • New RESPA booklet available • Guidance proposed for reverse mortgages • CDFIs may become FHLB members • Comments sought on PHA mortgages • Updated CHAS data published • 2010 Census to begin with an Alaska Native • Using outcome measures, rural America more prosperous than expected • Researchers find medical problems may be a major cause of foreclosures

January 6, 2010
Vol. 39, No. 1

HOUSING TRUST FUND AND PUBLIC HOUSING INCLUDED IN HOUSE JOBS BILL. On December 16 the House passed H.R. 2847, the Jobs for Main Street Act, which would redirect TARP funds to other uses, including $1 billion each for the National Housing Trust Fund and HUD’s Public Housing Capital Fund. The Senate is expected to act on the bill shortly after it returns to work January 20. The House returns January 12. Work begins soon on FY 2011 federal funding also, with the Obama Administration’s release of its FY 2011 budget proposal in early February. H.R. 2847 is available at https://thomas.loc.gov.

HOUSE VOTES TO EXTEND TAX CREDIT EXCHANGE AND NEW MARKETS TAX CREDIT FOR ONE YEAR. H.R. 4213, which passed the House in December and has not yet been considered by the Senate, would extend a number of other tax provisions as well. The bill text is available at https://thomas.loc.gov.

HUD REMINDS PHAS AND OTHERS OF NONDISCRIMINATION AND ACCESSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS. HUD Notice PIH – 2010-2 (HA) summarizes disability laws and regulations applicable to direct and indirect recipients of Public and Indian Housing program funds. It is available at https://www.hud.gov/hudclips and from HUD offices.

HUD INCOME VERIFICATION RULE FINALIZED. Minor changes were made in the proposed rule published October 15, 2009 (see HAC News, 10/14/09). See Federal Register, 12/29/09 or https://www.hud.gov/hudclips. Contact Nicole Faison, HUD, 202-402-4267.

NEW RESPA BOOKLET AVAILABLE. HUD has revised the booklet that lenders and mortgage brokers must give to every mortgage applicant, providing information to help understand the purchase process. The “Settlement Booklet” is posted at https://www.hud.gov/respa. Contact HUD’s RESPA office, 202-708-0502.

GUIDANCE PROPOSED FOR REVERSE MORTGAGES. Comments are due February 16 on Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council guidance for banks, thrifts, and credit unions that offer reverse mortgage products, including mortgages under HUD’s HECM program. FFIEC says these loans are not widespread but it anticipates increases. See Federal Register, 12/16/09 or https://www.regulations.gov. Contact Karen Tucker, OCC, 202-874-4428.

CDFIS MAY BECOME FHLB MEMBERS. Implementing a recent law, the Federal Housing Finance Agency has issued a final rule establishing criteria and processes for Community Development Financial Institutions to become members of Federal Home Loan Banks. See Federal Register, 1/5/10 or www.fhfa.gov. Contact Sylvia C. Martinez, FHFA, 202-408-2825, sylvia.martinez@fhfa.gov.

COMMENTS SOUGHT ON PHA MORTGAGES. HUD has proposed terms and conditions for allowing PHAs to mortgage their property, to replace its current case-by-case review. Comments are due January 31. See https://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/programs/ph/capfund/phmp.cfm. Contact Kevin Gallagher, HUD, 202-402-4192.

UPDATED CHAS DATA PUBLISHED. Drawn from the American Community Survey, these housing statistics are used by state and local governments in developing their Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategies and by HUD in apportioning funds. Data are available at https://www.huduser.org/portal/datasets/cp.html. Contact Paul.A.Joice@hud.gov with “CHAS Feedback” in the subject line.

2010 CENSUS TO BEGIN WITH AN ALASKA NATIVE. The Census Bureau has begun its campaign encouraging people to fill out 2010 forms, and Indian Country Today reports that the first officially counted person will be an Alaska Native from the village of Noorvik. Read the story at https://www.indiancountrytoday.com/national /hawaiialaska/80059332.html and learn more in 59 languages at https://2010.census.gov.

USING OUTCOME MEASURES, RURAL AMERICA MORE PROSPEROUS THAN EXPECTED. A University of Illinois study that analyzed unemployment, poverty, high school drop-out rates, and housing conditions rather than economic growth concluded that one in five rural counties in the United States is prosperous. Read a summary at https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-12/uoia-ram120209.php or visit https://irx.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/32/3/300 to purchase a published article for $25.

RESEARCHERS FIND MEDICAL PROBLEMS MAY BE A MAJOR CAUSE OF FORECLOSURES. Harvard Law School students surveyed foreclosed homeowners in four states in 2008. More than half identified medical costs, missed work time, and the like as major contributors to their defaults. “Get Sick, Get Out: The Medical Causes of Home Foreclosures” is online at https://ssrn.com/abstract=1416947.

HAC News e-mail subscribers get news faster. Subscribe to the HAC News by e-mail and receive it sooner, plus updates when important news occurs between issues. To switch from print to e-mail, send a request to lawrence@ruralhome.org, including your name and address.

Housing Assistance Council
1025 Vermont Ave., NW, Suite 606, Washington DC 20005
(202) 842-8600 | hac@ruralhome.org | www.ruralhome.org

Access a pdf version of this HAC News. • HUD funding bill for FY 2010 still uncertain • Deadlines extended for Section 202 and 811 applications • HOPE VI Main Street grants offered • Green retrofit funds no longer available • Inspection requirements restated for purchases with Section 502 guaranteed loans • RD clarifies State Environmental Coordinator role • HUD seeks ideas for reform • FHA proposes changes related to lenders • Transition period for new H-2A farmworker rules extended • HUD releases some 2010 operating cost adjustment factors • Analyses show poverty increased more in rural places, poverty of rural children varied • High-poverty places described in new report • Housing shortage growing for extremely low-income renters

December 2, 2009
Vol. 38, No. 24

HUD FUNDING BILL FOR FY 2010 STILL UNCERTAIN. A conference committee has not yet met to reconcile the House and Senate versions of the Transportation-HUD appropriations bill. HUD may be included in another continuing resolution when the current CR expires December 18, or may be combined with other agencies in an omnibus funding bill for the remainder of FY 2010. USDA’s FY 2010 bill became law on October 21. Funding levels are at https://ruralhome.org; the law’s text is at https://thomas.loc.gov/home/approp/app10.html.

DEADLINES EXTENDED FOR SECTION 202 AND 811 APPLICATIONS. HUD has made corrections in these programs’ NOFAs. Apply for Section 202 by December 14 and for Section 811 by December 17. Visit https://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/grants/fundsavail.cfm or https://www.grants.gov. For 202, contact Alicia Anderson, 202-402-5787, alicia.anderson@hud.gov; for 811, Marvis Hayward, 202-402-2255, marvis.s.hayward@hud.gov.

HOPE VI MAIN STREET GRANTS OFFERED. Local governments in cities under 50,000 population can apply by January 20 to replace unused commercial space with affordable housing. Visit https://www.grants.gov or https://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/grants/fundsavail.cfm. Contact Lawrence Gnessin, lawrence.gnessin@hud.gov.

GREEN RETROFIT FUNDS NO LONGER AVAILABLE. Based on the amount of funds remaining, HUD is not accepting further applications for the Green Retrofit Program for Multifamily Housing established by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. See Federal Register, 11/16/09 or https://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/RECOVERY/programs/GREEN. Contact HUD’s Office of Affordable Housing Preservation, 202-708-0001.

INSPECTION REQUIREMENTS RESTATED FOR PURCHASES WITH SECTION 502 GUARANTEED LOANS. Appraisals may be prepared by FHA roster appraisers using HUD standards. AN 4476 (Oct. 23, 2009) is available at https://www.rurdev.usda.gov/regs/an_list.html or from RD offices.

RD CLARIFIES STATE ENVIRONMENTAL COORDINATOR ROLE. AN 4475 (Sept. 18, 2009) is available at https://www.rurdev.usda.gov/regs/an_list.html or from RD offices.

HUD SEEKS IDEAS FOR REFORM. Submit comments, ideas, and votes on HUD’s FY 2010-2015 strategic plan at https://hudideasinaction.uservoice.com. Currently, posted ideas include moving USDA housing programs to HUD, making better use of nonprofits, and many more.

FHA PROPOSES CHANGES RELATED TO LENDERS. To implement 2008 and 2009 laws, FHA proposes to make lenders responsible for approval and oversight of loan correspondents, prohibit some lending entities from originating FHA-insured loans, and increase the net worth requirement for FHA-approved lenders. Comments are due December 30. See Federal Register, 11/30/09 or https://www.regulations.gov. Contact HUD’s Office of Lender Activities and Program Compliance, 202-708-1515.

TRANSITION PERIOD FOR NEW H-2A FARMWORKER RULES EXTENDED. As the Department of Labor continues to develop a new regulation for H-2A workers, the period of transition from the old regulation to the new one will now cover employers with dates of need before June 1, 2010. See Federal Register, 11/17/2009 or https://www.regulations.gov. Contact William L. Carlson, DOL, 202-693-3010.

HUD RELEASES SOME 2010 OPERATING COST ADJUSTMENT FACTORS. See Federal Register, 11/12/09, or https://www.nls.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/fr/. Contact Charles Capone, HUD, 202-402-3237.

ANALYSES SHOW POVERTY INCREASED MORE IN RURAL PLACES, POVERTY OF RURAL CHILDREN VARIED. Two separate reports consider new Census Bureau data (see HAC News, 9/16/09). The online rural news source Daily Yonder concluded that the gap between urban and rural poverty rates doubled from 2003 to 2008. Visit https://www.dailyyonder.com/poverty-rate-jumps-rural-america/2009/11/23/2466. The Carsey Institute found that poverty for rural children in the Midwest increased from 2007 to 2008. Visit https://carseyinstitute.unh.edu/publications/IB-Mattingly-childpoverty09.pdf

HIGH-POVERTY PLACES DESCRIBED IN NEW REPORT. Poor rural and urban places around the country are profiled in The Enduring Challenge of Concentrated Poverty in America, published by the Brookings Institution and the Federal Reserve Board. Visit https://www.brookings.edu/reports/2008/1024_concentrated_poverty.aspx.

HOUSING SHORTAGE GROWING FOR EXTREMELY LOW-INCOME RENTERS. A National Low Income Housing Coalition analysis of American Community Survey data shows the shortage of units affordable for renters with incomes under 30% of area median grew from 2.7 million units in 2007 to 3.1 million in 2008. There were 37 rental housing units affordable and available for every 100 ELI renter households in 2008. Visit https://www.nlihc.org/detail/article.cfm?article_id=6604&id=48 or contact NLIHC, 202-662-1530.

Housing Assistance Council
1025 Vermont Ave., NW, Suite 606, Washington DC 20005
(202) 842-8600 | hac@ruralhome.org | www.ruralhome.org

Access a pdf version of this HAC News. • Second CR will include HUD • USDA appropriations completed • Committee acts to create consumer agency • CDFI Fund offers housing counseling money • HUD suggests Logic Model for ICDBG grantees • OMB emphasizes place-based strategies for 2011 budget

October 28 , 2009
Vol. 38, No. 22

SECOND CR WILL INCLUDE HUD. House-Senate conference committee members have not yet met to discuss the FY 2010 Transportation-HUD appropriations bill. Those agencies and others will be funded temporarily through a second continuing resolution, expected to be effective through December 18. It remains unclear whether the final T‑HUD bill will pass as a stand-alone measure or be folded into an omnibus with other appropriations bills.

a. Proposed new initiatives under CDBG. b. Bills in both houses would finance the NHTF separately. c. Proposed replacement for HOPE VI. d. $25 million new initiative proposed under CDBG. e. New initiative to combat mortgage fraud.

USDA APPROPRIATIONS COMPLETED. President Obama signed the bill October 21. Funding levels are posted at https://ruralhome.org; the law’s text is at https://thomas.loc.gov/home/approp/app10.html.

COMMITTEE ACTS TO CREATE CONSUMER AGENCY. On October 22 the House Financial Services Committee approved H.R. 3126, a bill to establish a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency, aiming to protect Americans from abusive financial products and services such as predatory mortgages. Visit https://thomas.loc.gov for a copy of the bill or https://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/financialsvcs_dem/pressCFPA_102209.shtml for a summary.

CDFI FUND OFFERS HOUSING COUNSELING MONEY. A new pilot program will fund certified housing counseling agencies to educate prospective homebuyers. Deadline is November 19. See Federal Register, 10/16/09 or https://www.cdfifund.gov. Contact CDFI Fund staff, 202-622-6355, cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov.

HUD SUGGESTS LOGIC MODEL FOR ICDBG GRANTEES. Comments are due December 22 on a proposal to require Indian CDBG recipients to prepare the Logic Model already required for other competitive HUD programs. See Federal Register, 10/23/09, or https://www.regulations.gov. Contact Deborah Lalancette, HUD, 303-675-1600.

OMB EMPHASIZES PLACE-BASED STRATEGIES FOR 2011 BUDGET. An August 11 Office of Management and Budget memo asks federal agencies to use place-based strategies in their FY 2011 budget proposals, noting that rural places and Indian Country face special challenges and that it is important to coordinate rural development programs with broader regional initiatives. Visit https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/memoranda_fy2009/m09-28.pdf.

Housing Assistance Council
1025 Vermont Ave., NW, Suite 606, Washington DC 20005
(202) 842-8600 | hac@ruralhome.org | www.ruralhome.org

ownloads/map’);=”pageTracker._trackPageview(‘/downloads/map’);”>Access a pdf version of this HAC News. • CR expected through October • HUD offers funds for homelessness, healthy housing • Assets for Independence grant applications due January 15, 2010 • CDFI Fund issues FY 2010 NOFA • RD guidance discusses stable, dependable income for Section 502 guaranteed borrowers • USDA withdraws guaranteed loans unified platform • FY 2010 final Fair Market Rents published • HUD explains protecting tenants in NSP properties • U.S. to host U.N. World Habitat Day on October 5 • IRS data on migration patterns shows coasts and small metro areas popular • Baby boom migration likely to impact rural America, ERS reports • Top 1% got two-thirds of U.S. income gains, 2002-2007