NCSHA Blogs
The Emergency Rental Assistance Program: Program Outlook and Outcomes at Year Two
Last month, the Treasury Department celebrated the second anniversary of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which authorized a number of key emergency housing programs in response to the coronavirus pandemic, including the second allocation of funds for the Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) program. Under the congressionally set ERA formula, a large majority of these funds flowed through state agencies, including 28 HFAs, with some local governments receiving smaller direct grants. Just two years into the program, the vast majority of the $46.55 billion authorized for the program — $25 billion for ERA 1 enacted at the end of 2021 and $21.55 billion for ERA 2 enacted in ARPA in March 2022 — has been spent, providing rental and utility assistance to millions of families in need across the nation.
Treasury Highlights American Rescue Plan Act Achievements on Second Anniversary of Its Passage
This week, the Treasury Department celebrated the second anniversary of the signing of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which authorized key emergency programs in response to the coronavirus pandemic and the economic fallout it created. State housing finance agencies have played an integral role in the implementation of the ARPA programs that kept Americans stably housed during the pandemic and facilitated the financial feasibility of housing development despite a volatile economic environment. ARPA-authorized housing programs include the Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) 2 program (ERA 1 having been authorized in other legislation shortly before ARPA’s enactment), the Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF), the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (FRF), and the HOME-ARP program at HUD.
Biden – Harris Administration Releases Additional Details on FY24 Budget Proposal
The Biden – Harris Administration has released supplementary materials for its Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) budget request, including appendices and congressional justifications for relevant agencies. This blog post, which supplements NCSHA’s initial overview of the FY24 budget request, highlights several items that may be of particular interest for HFAs.
Biden – Harris Administration Announces Reduction in Annual Insurance Premium for FHA Home Buyers
The Biden – Harris Administration yesterday announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) would lower annual mortgage insurance premiums for Federal Housing Administration-insured home purchase loans. FHA explained the changes in further detail in a mortgagee letter released yesterday morning.
White House Announces Actions to Protect Renters and Promote Rental Affordability
Earlier today the White House released a fact sheet on the Biden – Harris Administration’s actions to protect renters and promote rental affordability. The actions fall into two major areas. The first is a Blueprint for a Renters Bill of Rights that will guide a number of federal agency actions to identify practices that unfairly treat tenants in and applicants for rental housing, including the Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Housing Finance Agency, and the Departments of Justice and Housing and Urban Development.
HUD Issues Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Proposed Rule
Yesterday, the Department of Housing and Urban Development published the much-anticipated Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) proposed rule, which would implement the statutory obligation HUD and its program participants have to affirmatively further fair housing, as required by the 1968 Fair Housing Act. The proposed rule is intended to build and improve upon HUD’s 2015 AFFH final rule adopted under the Obama Administration.
House Republicans Announce New Members for Committees with Jurisdiction Over Affordable Housing Issues
With the House speakership now settled, House Republicans have begun announcing the new members who will join various committees in the 118th Congress, including the Appropriations, Financial...
HOME Coalition Seeks Robust Funding for FY23
On behalf of the HOME Coalition, today NCSHA contacted appropriators in both congressional chambers to urge them to provide robust funding for the HOME Investment Partnerships program for the remainder of FY23. The letter expresses support for $2.5 billion for HOME but acknowledges appropriators are unlikely to be able to achieve that level and urges no less than $1.9 billion for the program, which is the amount requested in the President’s Budget Request for FY23. Under the continuing resolution, HOME is currently funded at FY22 levels, or $1.5 billion.
54 Members of Congress Urge House Leadership to Expand Housing Credit Production This Year
This morning, a bipartisan coalition of members of the House of Representatives led by Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act sponsors Suzan DelBene (D-WA) and Brad Wenstrup (R-OH) sent a letter...
