HUD Secretary Donovan: CDBG Will Be Fully Funded in Fiscal Year 2011 (US Conf of Mayors)
Speaking at the Friday morning plenary session, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan told Conference of Mayors President Burnsville (MN) Mayor Elizabeth B. Kautz and more than 200 mayors attending the 78th Winter Meeting that even though FY11 will be a “tough fiscal year and we’re going to have to make some difficult choices,” the strong commitment to the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program will be maintained, and that the program will be fully funded. In response to a question from Piscataway (NJ) Mayor Brian C. Wahler on what exactly “fully funded” meant, the Secretary strongly suggested that it was approximately the same as FY10 funding which is $4 billion. Donovan also said that other core rental assistance and economic development programs, such as the Tenant and Project-Based Section programs, will also maintain their funding levels in the FY11 budget.
The Secretary’s comments on CDBG and the other programs in his address reflected on “a remarkable last year…and the challenges we’ve faced and those we continue to face.” The most serious challenge was the housing crisis. After a near collapse of the financial sector and with housing prices falling, the administration’s efforts paid off, Secretary Donovan said a year later with “home prices up for two quarters in a row, interest rates near five percent and home sales rebounding — the nation’s housing market is returning to stability.” This accomplishment can be attributed to a number of institutions and policies: the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Ginnie Mae and the GSE’s, a first-time homebuyer tax credit, billions of dollars of temporary financing and credit made available through state and local housing finance agencies, and a multifaceted federal modification program.
Donovan spoke of the importance of the Recovery Act or stimulus funds. He said that HUD had awarded “98 percent of our $14 billion in Recovery Funds — $13.3 billion — and we’ve created over 13,000 jobs to date.” He congratulated the mayors “for a job well done on spending these funds quickly and effectively.” An excellent example of the effectiveness of the Recovery Act is the funding of the Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program. Donovan cited the Conference of Mayors recent Hunger and Homelessness Report, which found that the Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program will “fundamentally change the way a community provides services to people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.”
President Barack Obama, the Secretary said, “understands the challenges our cities face and has done the hard work of helping solve them as a community organizer…” He added, “This administration see cities not as a source of our problem — but a big part of the solution.” It is for this reason that an initiative is being developed such as HUD’s Sustainability Partnership with the EPA and the Department of Transportation, which will “connect housing to jobs by linking housing and transportation and land use.”
In closing his remarks, Donovan said that HUD would continue to be a strong partner with cities. “To echo President Obama’s comments yesterday, one thing that every city needs is a partner — both in the White House and the Administration — who can provide resources, but also the guidance necessary to use those resources in the best possible way, specific to the challenges they face.”
By Eugene T. Lowe
February 1, 2010
