Hartford Foundation joins effort to preserve the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 4 Capacity Building and Affordable Housing program.

The Hartford Foundation joined more than 1,000 state and local organizations involved with community development and housingissuesin writing a letter to the House and Senate chairs and ranking members of the Congressional Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development to urge them to preserve the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 4 Capacity Building and Affordable Housing program.

 

Section 4 strengthens rural, suburban, and urban communities across the nation by providing flexible support to local nonprofit organizations to develop affordable housing, finance small businesses, revitalize commercial corridors, and help address local healthcare, childcare, education, and safety needs. Through direct financial assistance, training, and guidance, Section 4 provides local organizations with the staffing, program development, and financial resources to maximize the impact of the services they provide and ensure the long-term sustainability of their investments. Section 4 has been funded at $35 million since FY 2012, while the demand for affordable housing and small business investments in low income communities continues to grow. In addition to preserving this Section 4 as a standalone program, the organizations request a modest $5 million increase in Section 4  to enable local nonprofits to meet the growing needs of the communities they serve.

 

The omnibus spending bill approved by Congress preserves the Section 4 Capacity Building Program funding it at $35 million (the same as Fiscal Year 2017). The omnibus bill also included $42.7 billion in net discretionary funding for HUD, a $3.9 billion boost over FY 2017 levels. Most programs at HUD would see funding increases, and many of these programs are higher than what either the U.S. House or Senate included in their draft FY 2018 bills appropriations bill. 

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March 5, 2018

The Honorable Susan Collins
Chair
Subcommittee on Transportation,
Housing and Urban Development
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC 20510

 

The Honorable Mario Diaz-Balart
Chair
Subcommittee on Transportation,
Housing and Urban Development
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

 

The Honorable Jack Reed
Ranking Member
Subcommittee on Transportation,
Housing and Urban Development
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC 20510

 

The Honorable David Price
Ranking Member
Subcommittee on Transportation,
Housing and Urban Development
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515


Dear Chair Collins, Ranking Member Reed, Chair Diaz-Balart, and Ranking Member

Price:

We, the undersigned 1,094 state and local community development and housing organizations, urge you to preserve the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 4 Capacity Building and Affordable Housing program. Specifically, we ask you to help ensure that Section 4 remains a standalone program and to provide no less than $40 million under the FY 2019

Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bill.

Section 4 strengthens rural, suburban, and urban communities across the nation by providing flexible support to local nonprofit organizations to develop affordable housing, finance small businesses, revitalize commercial corridors, and help address local healthcare, childcare, education, and safety needs. Through direct financial assistance, training, and guidance, Section 4 provides local organizations with the staffing, program development, and financial resources to maximize the impact of the services they provide and ensure the long-term sustainability of their investments. Section 4 has been funded at $35 million since FY 2012, while the demand for affordable housing and small business investments in low income communities continues to grow. A modest $5 million increase in Section 4 will enable local nonprofits to meet the growing needs of the communities they serve.

Section 4 is the only federal program that is exclusively focused on increasing the effectiveness of local community development organizations and has benefited all 50 states and the District of Columbia. From 2013 – 2017, this investment has:

  • Helped to create and preserve more than 41,000 affordable homes;
  • Attracted close to $7.5 billion in total development costs for low-income neighborhoods and communities across the country;
  • Assisted in job creation, support of small businesses and the development of millions of square feet of commercial, retail and community facility space; and
  • Supported programming efforts such as financial counseling, job training, and crime reduction in order to improve the physical and economic conditions in thousands of neighborhoods.

Section 4 has also provided relief aid by helping community development organizations located in federally designated disaster areas rehabilitate housing units damaged by Hurricane Katrina, the Joplin tornado and Hurricane Sandy, as well as last year’s Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria.

Section 4 funds are matched on a 3 to 1 basis, and then used to leverage additional public and private capital. Total aggregate leverage has consistently been in the range of $20 or higher for each dollar of Section 4 funding.

Given the tremendous needs in low-income communities—and the scarcity of capital available to nonprofit, community-based organizations to address these needs—now is not the time to eliminate or weaken HUD’s only dedicated source of funding that builds the capacity of these organizations. With a modest investment of $40 million for FY 2019, community organizations can create and sustain jobs, increase housing production, and preserve the vitality and affordability of existing housing developments nationwide.

The undersigned organizations recognize the value that Section 4 brings to their communities. For that reason, we urge you to preserve Section 4 as a stand-alone program and to provide $40 million in the FY 2019 THUD Appropriations bill.