Federal Stimulus Funds Released: California Gets Substantial Housing Funding

Stimulus Funds Released: California Gets Substantial Housing Funding

(As reported to by the Federal Policy Project, California Housing Partnership Project) Acting with impressive speed, HUD announced yesterday the release of more than $10 billion of the $13.6 billion in affordable housing stimulus funds from the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 signed into law by President Obama only last week. The $10 billion includes:

• $2.25 in HOME Tax Credit Assistance Program Funds, of which California will receive $325 million (14.5% of the total) to assist Low Income Housing Tax Credit properties (9% and 4%) which have not been able to find adequate private investment.
• $3 billion in Public Housing Capital Funding, of which $118 million (3.95% of the total) will go to California Public Housing Authorities for immediate improvements to public housing.
• $1.5 million in Homeless Prevention Funds (through the Emergency Shelter Grant program), of which California will receive $189 million or 12.67%.
• $1 billion in CDBG Funds, of which California entitlement jurisdictions will receive $123 million (12.58%) to use for a variety of purposes including but not limited to investments in the creation and preservation of affordable homes.
• $2 billion for Renewing Section 8 Contracts to stabilize the renewal funding process and re-assure private owners of the federal governments continuing commitment to this program, which supports the operation of 130,000 affordable homes in California alone.

Yet to be released are other stimulus funds including the rules governing the exchange of 9% LIHTCs by state allocating agencies and $1 billion dollars in competitive grants for large-scale revitalization of public housing.

Affordable home advocates are still awaiting the addition to full funding for housing programs serving lower income households (including seed funding for the National Housing Trust Fund) and have begun working to get the improvements to the 4% LIHTC program that were not included in the stimulus package.

SCANPH continues to closely monitor the current situation of the federal stimulus implementation and the state bond freeze that will assist affordable home development in California. A meeting of SCANPH members had met with TCAC Director Bill Pavao on February 19, 2009 at the SCANPH offices. Pavao is meeting with stakeholders across the state to determine a plan of action for California's share of the new federal stimulus package that President Obama has signed.

As a followup to the meeting, SCANPH would like to post notes from the meeting as recorded by Perla Eston and wishes to thank her for sharing it with us (download here).