HAC News

HAC News: September 14, 2011

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September 14, 2011
Vol. 40, No. 19

• President’s job plan includes possible housing aid • Continuing Resolution expected to start FY12 • Senate committee’s FY12 rural housing spending levels higher than House’s • House subcommittee proposes HUD spending cuts • USDA and HUD testify against moving RHS to HUD • USDA offers RA and equity loans for preservation • Guidance issued on using Section 538 for Section 515 preservation • National poverty rate worsened in 2010

September 14, 2011
Vol. 40, No. 19

PRESIDENT’S JOB PLAN INCLUDES POSSIBLE HOUSING AID. Project Rebuild, part of the American Jobs Act described in President Obama’s September 8 speech and sent to Congress September 12, would hire unemployed workers to repair distressed properties, emphasizing commercial properties. Visit https://www.whitehouse.gov.

CONTINUING RESOLUTION EXPECTED TO START FY12. Funding bills, including those for USDA and HUD, are not likely to be complete by the beginning of fiscal year 2012 on October 1. Visit https://ruralhome.org for updates and https://thomas.loc.gov/home/approp/app12.html for bill texts.

SENATE COMMITTEE’S FY12 RURAL HOUSING SPENDING LEVELS HIGHER THAN HOUSE’S. The Senate Ap-propriations Committee passed a bill September 7 that provides more funding for almost all USDA housing programs than the House, though less than FY11 appropriations. The Section 502 guarantee and Section 538 programs would remain at FY11 levels. The bill includes $30 million for Section 523 self-help, $2 million for multifamily preservation, and $904.7 million for Section 521 Rental Assistance. The $900 million for RA contract renewals is the amount pro-posed in the Administration’s budget, which assumed 300 properties (HAC estimates about 8,100 units) will leave the Section 515 and 514/516 programs in FY12.

USDA Rural Development Program
(dollars in millions)

FY10 Approp.

FY11
Approp. (a)

FY12 Admin. Budget

FY12
Hse. Bill (H.R. 2112) (e)

FY12
Sen. Bill
(H.R. 2112)

Loans and Payments

502 Single Fam. Direct

$1,121

$1,121

$211.4

$845.6

$900

502 Single Family Guar.

12,000

24,000

24,000

24,000

24,000

504 Very Low-inc. Rpr.

34.4

23.4

0

0

10

514 Farm Labor Hsg.

27.3

(b)

27

(d)

23.4

515 Rental Hsg. Direct

69.5

69.5

95.2

58.6

64.5

538 Rental Hsg. Guar.

129.1

30.9

0

0

130

Rental Prsrv. Revlg. Lns.

1.8

1

0

0

0

Grants

504 Very Low-inc. Rpr.

31.6

(c)

11.5

32

27

516 Farm Labor Hsg.

9.9

(b)

9.8

(d)

8

523 Self-Help TA

41.9

37

0

22

30

533 Hsg. Prsrv. Grants

9.4

(c)

0

0

7.3

521 Rental Assistance
Preservation RA
New Constr. 515 RA
New Constr. 514/516 RA

980
(6)
(2.03)
(3.4)

955.6
0
(2.03)
(3)

906.7
0
(3)
(3)

890
0
(1.5)
(2.5)

904.7
0
(2)
(2)

542 Rural Hsg. Vouchers

16.4

14

16

11

11

Rental Prsrv. Demo. (MPR)

25

15

0

0

2

Rural Cmnty. Dev’t Init.

6.3

5

8.4

3

4.2

a. Figures shown do not include 0.2% across the board reduction. b. Budget authority (the cost to the government) in the farm labor housing account remains at FY10 levels, but loan costs have risen as interest rates have risen, so the 514/516 program levels could be somewhat lower. c. The Rural Housing Assistance Grants pool, which funds Section 504 loans, Section 533, and some other smaller programs, is reduced by $1.1 million from FY10 levels. d. The BA for Section 514 and 516 would fall from $9.7 million in FY11 to $2.5 million for FY12, but the House bill does not allocate amounts specifically for loans or grants. e. Figures shown do not include 0.78% across the board reduction.

HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE PROPOSES HUD SPENDING CUTS. On September 8 a House appropriations sub-committee passed an FY12 spending bill for HUD that would reduce funding for most programs and provide no funding for the Rural Innovation Fund or housing counseling. Dates have not been scheduled for consideration by the full House committee or by Senate appropriators.

HUD Program
(dollars in millions)

FY10 Approp.

FY11 Admin. Budget

FY11 Proposed CR
(H.R. 1)

FY12 Admin. Budget

Cmty. Devel. Block Grants

$4,450

4,380.1

1,500

3,781

Sustainable Commun. Initiative

(150)

(150)

0

(b)

Rural Innovation Fund (a)

(25)

0

25

25

Catalytic Investment Grants

(150)

0

HOME

1,825

1,650

1,650

1,650

Tenant-Based Rental Asstnce.

16,339

17,310

14,080

15,223

Project-Based Rental Asstnce.

8,551.5

9,382.3

8,882

9,035

Transforming Rental Asstnce.

350

200

Vets. Affairs Spptve Hsg. Vouchers

75

0

75

75

Public Hsg. Capital Fund

2,500

2,044

1,428

2,405

Public Hsg. Operating Fund

4,775

4,829

4,626

3,962

Public Hsg. Revtlztn. (HOPE VI)

135

0

0

0

Choice Neighbrhd. Initiative

65

250

65

250

Housing Trust Fund

1,000

Native Amer. Hsg. Block Grant

700

580

500

700

Homeless Assistance Grants

1,865

2,055

1,865

2,372

Hsg. Opps. for Persons w/ AIDS

335

340

335

335

202 Hsg. for Elderly

825

273

238

757

811 Hsg. for Disabled

300

90

90

196

Fair Housing

72

61

72

72

Rural Hsg. & Econ. Dev. (RHED) (a)

0

0

0

0

Healthy Homes & Lead Haz. Cntl.

140

140

120

140

Sustainable Housing & Communities (b)

0

150

Self-Help Homeownshp. (SHOP)

27

0

27

0

Brownfields Redevelopment

17.5

0

0

0

Housing Counseling

87.5

88

0

88

a. The Rural Innovation Fund replaced RHED. b. Funded as part of CDBG in 2010 and separately in the FY12 budget

USDA AND HUD TESTIFY AGAINST MOVING RHS TO HUD. Their statements were made at the House Financial Services Committee’s housing subcommittee’s second hearing, held September 8, on a draft bill that would move USDA’s Rural Housing Service to HUD (see HAC News, 5/25/11) and also change FHA and Ginnie Mae. At a September 13 House agriculture subcommittee hearing, RHS Administrator Tammye Treviño again made clear that the Administration opposes the idea. Visit https://ruralhome.org for a summary and links.

USDA OFFERS RA AND EQUITY LOANS FOR PRESERVATION. $3 million in Section 521 Rental Assistance and $10 million in equity loans are available to owners or nonprofit purchasers of Section 515 properties already on RD’s incentives waiting list. See August 8 Unnumbered Letter at https://www.rurdev.usda.gov/RD_UnnumberedList.html. Contact Cynthia L. Johnson, RD, 202-720-1940, cynthial.johnson@wdc.usda.gov.

GUIDANCE ISSUED ON USING SECTION 538 FOR SECTION 515 PRESERVATION. See August 16 Unnumbered Letter at https://www.rurdev.usda.gov/RD_UnnumberedList.html. Contact Tammy Daniels, RD, 202-720-0021, tammy.daniels@wdc.usda.gov.

NATIONAL POVERTY RATE WORSENED IN 2010. Visit https://ruralhome.org for a rural perspective on new poverty, income, and health insurance data from the Census Bureau, https://www.census.gov.