Washington Report | June 8, 2018

NCSHA meetings the week of June 4 with the top staff at HUD and the Rural Housing Service (RHS) provided powerful reminders of the importance — and impact — of HFA executive director advocacy on state HFA housing priorities.

NCSHA’s entire executive committee — Grant Whitaker (UT), Kim Herman (WA), Gerald Hunter (ID), Brian Hudson (PA), and Tia Boatman Patterson (CA) — along with Barbara Fields (RI) each offered substantive, state-specific insights to advance common priorities for all HFAs on issues ranging from multifamily financing to down payment assistance, rental housing contract administration, and rural housing preservation and pilot programs.

In a meeting with HUD Deputy Secretary Pam Patenaude, the top agency staff on single-family and multifamily financing, and members of the office of general counsel, Grant (on his seventh trip to DC in the past seven months on behalf of NCSHA) and Gerald urged HUD to deliver on long-planned guidance on down payment assistance provided by state HFAs and by other entities operating in multiple states. We learned HUD will soon issue a proposed rule for comment on the issue.

Tia and Barbara forcefully advocated for HUD’s continuation of the FHA – HFA Multifamily Loan Risk-Sharing Program’s Federal Financing Bank financing option, which makes money for the federal government while enabling HFAs to preserve smaller properties in rural and other underserved areas. Brian laid out the performance-based and legal reasons why state HFAs are best equipped to deliver holistic, tenant-oriented, and asset-centric oversight and monitoring of the financial and physical condition of project-based Section 8 properties.

In a meeting with the new Rural Housing Service Administrator, Joel Baxley, and his senior team, Kim pushed RHS to be a more responsive partner with state HFAs in preserving USDA Section 515 properties. We learned RHS will soon post a Federal Register notice with details on the construction-to-permanent mortgage program, which the agency previewed at NCSHA’s Legislative Conference in March.

The most effective advocates for state HFA priorities are agency executive directors: constituents of federal elected officials and the housing leaders from the districts and states they represent. The sacrifice and commitment countless executive directors over the years have made to come to Washington to fight for state HFA shared priorities runs through this organization’s history and is essential to our continued success.

An executive director who has epitomized that tradition is Sarah Carpenter, who announced her retirement this week after 20 years at the helm of the Vermont Housing Finance Agency. Sarah has worked closely and consistently with her Senators, including senior Senate Appropriations Committee member Patrick Leahy (D), to advance Vermont’s and NCSHA’s priorities. Sarah served on NCSHA’s Board of Directors from 2004 – 2013, chaired NCSHA’s Supportive Services Focus Group from 2011 – 2014, participated on her Federal Home Loan Bank’s Advisory Council, and helped with NCSHA – Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac working groups throughout her tenure. We wish her all the best in her future endeavors.

Stockton Williams | Executive Director

In This Issue

• Senate Appropriations Committee Approves FY 2019 THUD Bill Sustaining Increased Funding for HOME, Other HUD Programs
• NCSHA Participates in Treasury’s Annual Hardest Hit Fund Summit
• Brian Montgomery Sworn In to Lead Federal Housing Administration
• Housing Credit Legislation Cosponsorship Momentum Continues
• HUD Launches EnVision Centers in Detroit and 16 Other Communities
• HUD Publishes Housing Trust Fund Allocations in Federal Register, Issues Allocation Plan Guidance
• House Financial Services Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Homeless Children and Youth Act of 2017
• Report Raises Profile of Housing Crisis on the Hill
• Bipartisan Policy Center Releases Report on Intersection of Housing and Health
• Looking Ahead

Senate Appropriations Committee Approves FY 2019 THUD Bill Sustaining Increased Funding for HOME, Other HUD Programs 

The Senate Appropriations Committee June 7 unanimously approved the Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) funding bill, which provides $44.5 billion in total net discretionary spending for HUD programs, a four percent increase over FY 2018 levels. According to THUD Subcommittee Chairwoman Susan Collins (R-ME), this increased allocation ensures the bill can fully fund tenant- and project-based rental assistance renewal costs, maintain FY 2018’s increased funding levels for critical programs including the HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME), and make other targeted investments. Highlights of the bill include:

• $1.362 billion for HOME, the same as FY 2018 enacted, and 10 percent higher than the House Appropriations Committee’s FY 2019 bill.
• $3.3 billion for Community Development Block Grants, equal to FY 2018 funding.
• $2.6 billion for Homeless Assistance Grants, $200 million more than FY 2018 funding, with $82 million set aside to address youth homelessness and $50 million for survivors of domestic violence.
• $22.8 billion for Housing Choice Vouchers, 11 percent more than FY 2018 funding.
• $11.7 billion to renew all project-based rental assistance contracts, an increase of $632 million over the FY 2018 funding level.

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NCSHA Participates in Treasury’s Annual Hardest Hit Fund Summit

The Treasury Department earlier this week held its annual Summit for HFAs participating in the Hardest Hit Fund program (HHF). NCSHA staff attended the second day of the Summit, which featured presentations and discussion on the recent hearing on HHF held by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform’s subcommittees on Intergovernmental Affairs and Government Operations, program evaluation, and issues regarding the winding-down of HHF programs. While at the Summit, NCSHA staff met with Kipp Kranbuhl, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Small Business, Community Development, and Affordable Housing Policy, to better introduce him to HFAs and their top policy priorities.

This is expected to be Treasury’s final HHF Summit, as several HFAs are preparing to close their programs to new applicants this year or next. This prompted many attendees to reflect on the program’s many successes, with nearly 350,000 homeowners having received assistance through the end of 2017. Treasury staff compiled a collection of stories about individual homeowners who received assistance through HHF. Treasury also showed a series of videos featuring testimonials from HHF beneficiaries, which can be viewed in a special playlist on NCSHA’s YouTube page.