Althea Arnold

Senior Vice President for Policy and Chief Operating Officer

Althea Arnold leads the policy efforts at Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future (SAHF)-- a national collaborative of 12 nonprofit affordable housing developers who own, operate and manage 145,000 affordable rental homes in 49 across the country. SAHF's mission-driven alliance advances resident-centered policy changes and sustainable solutions within the affordable housing sector. As part of this, Althea works with key policymakers in Congress, HUD, and other federal and state agencies to build support and remove barriers to the preservation and production of high-quality affordable rental housing. Althea joined SAHF as Senior Vice President, Policy in 2020. Prior to SAHF, she served as a Senior Legislative & Policy Associate at the National Council of State Housing Agencies, focusing on federal appropriations, HUD multifamily programs, and supportive housing issues. Earlier in her career Althea worked at the National Low Income Housing Coalition researching affordable housing needs to inform housing policy. Althea holds a Master’s degree in Public Policy from Georgetown University, with a concentration in nonprofit leadership, and a Bachelor of Art’s degree from Connecticut College. HFAi25 Sessions: Maximizing Resident Outcomes and Financial Stability at Properties Industry Outlook AC24 Session: Preserving Existing Permanent Supportive Housing Properties HFAi24 Sessions: Housing Credit Development Forum Industry Outlook AC23 Sessions: Managing Rising Multifamily Operating Costs Preservation of Housing for People with Special Needs HCC23 Sessions: HUD-Assisted Housing Forum, Part 1 HUD-Assisted Housing Forum, Part 2 HFAi23 Session: Industry Outlook AC22 Session: The Future of Senior Housing

House Appropriations Committee Approves FY 2017 HUD Funding Bill

The House Appropriations Committee approved its Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) funding bill by voice vote yesterday afternoon. The full Committee did not modify HUD program funding levels from those reported by the THUD Subcommittee on May 18.

Senate Passes FY 2017 Housing Appropriations Bill

Yesterday, the Senate voted 89 to 8 in favor of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD) funding bill, H.R. 2577. Despite an overall allocation that is $827 million below last year’s funding level, the Senate THUD bill provides nearly $1.5 billion more for HUD’s affordable housing and community development programs than Congress appropriated for them in FY 2016.

HUD Publishes Housing Trust Fund State Allocations

HUD published in today’s Federal Register the state-by-state 2016 allocations for the Housing Trust Fund (HTF). As HUD announced last month, total 2016 HTF funding is approximately $174 million.

HUD Issues HTF Allocation Plan Guidance

On April 26, HUD issued Notice CPD-16-07 providing guidance to Housing Trust Fund (HTF) grantees on the submission requirements for Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 HTF Allocation Plans. The Notice includes important information on the HTF allocation plan process, including how HUD will notify states of their allocation, required elements of the allocation plan, and guidance on revising state strategic plans and describes changes HUD has made to the consolidated plan regulations to account for the HTF allocation plan process.

Senate Appropriations Committee Passes FY 2017 HUD Funding Bill

The Senate Appropriations Committee on April 21 unanimously approved its Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) funding bill. The THUD Appropriations Subcommittee reported the bill April 19. The full Committee adopted the bill with only minor amendments to the Subcommittee-passed bill, which did not change its HUD program funding levels.

NLIHC Report Finds Shortage of 7.2 Million Affordable Rental Units for Lowest Income Renters

On March 24, the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) released its 2016 report focusing on the gap between the number of extremely low-income (ELI; households with incomes at 30 percent of area median income or less) and the number of affordable housing units available to them. According to NLIHC’s The Affordable Housing Gap Analysis 2016, there are just 31 units affordable and available to every 100 ELI households nationwide—a shortfall of 7.2 million units.

Representative Waters Introduces Emergency Relief Legislation to End Homelessness

Last week, House Financial Services Committee Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA) introduced the Ending Homelessness Act of 2016, H.R. 4888, which would provide $13.27 billion over five years to housing and services programs with the goal of ending homelessness in America. Announcing her new legislation, Representative Waters argued that homelessness is not an insurmountable problem but requires “the political will to put the necessary resources behind the solutions we know will work” and called on Democrats and Republicans to come together to end the homelessness crisis through increased resources.

HUD Proposes Changes to FHA-HFA Multifamily Risk-Sharing Program Regulations

On March 8, HUD published a proposed rule in the Federal Register amending existing regulations for the Section 542(c) Housing Finance Agency (HFA) Risk-Sharing Program. HUD explains in the proposed rule that the existing regulations were last updated in 2000 and some aspects have since become outdated. The proposed rule, largely informed by dialogue with NCSHA and a working group of HFAs, is intended to better align the regulations with current industry and HUD policies and practices and provide greater flexibility for program participants.

Administration Releases FY 2017 Budget

On February 9, 2016 the Administration sent Congress its Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Budget, proposing funding for all federal programs, including HUD and the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) rural housing programs. The Budget proposes a total of $1.1 trillion in discretionary spending for FY 2017, abiding by the discretionary caps negotiated as part of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015.

House Unanimously Passes Rental Assistance Reform Bill

Yesterday, in a rare unanimous vote, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 3700, the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act (HOTMA), which would make various reforms to rental housing assistance programs, including streamlining Housing Choice Voucher program inspections, simplifying the requirements for project basing vouchers, and providing public housing agencies (PHAs) greater flexibility to transfer funding between their operating and capital funds.