Cantwell, Barrasso Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Reauthorize Key Tribal Housing Bill

The Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act is Set to Expire in Two Months

From the Chair of Maria Cantwell

 

WASHINGTON D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and John Barrasso (R-WY) introduced S.1352, to reauthorize the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act (NAHASDA), which is scheduled to expire on September 30, 2013.  They were joined by Senators Tim Johnson (D-SD), Jon Tester (D-MT), Tom Udall (D-NM), Mark Begich (D-AK), Al Franken (D-MN), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Mazie Hirono (D-HI) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND).

 

In 1996, Congress first passed NAHASDA to help ensure that Tribes and their members are provided safe and affordable housing, and that housing programs meet the needs of Tribal members well into the future.   NAHASDA helps address a critical need for housing assistance in Indian Country, where more than 28% of reservation households lack adequate plumbing and kitchen facilities, while nationally only 5.4% of households lack such infrastructure.

 

“Housing conditions in Native American communities remain some of the most challenging in the nation.  This Act is designed to assist those communities, where substandard housing is rampant and poverty is a serious issue,” Cantwell said.   “The reauthorization of this Act is critically important to help ensure that Tribes continue to have access to the tools necessary to provide for the basic housing needs of their members.  While more must be done, I am pleased to note that this is one of the most successfully implemented programs in Indian Country to date.”

 

“Our bill responds to a fundamental need on our nation’s Indian reservations: safe, adequate housing for low income Indian people.   Without adequate housing, families can’t thrive and parents can’t provide a healthy environment for their children so they can do well in school and life.  This problem takes a toll on entire reservation communities and we have to address it,” Barrasso said.  “I look forward to working with the Chairwoman and other members of the Committee to move this bill forward in the Senate as soon as possible.”

 

This bill improves the current law by:

 

  • Increasing usage of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits by developers and investors that target projects serving Indian communities.

 

  • Elimination of duplicative requirements when multiple agencies are involved in a housing-related project by identifying the majority federal partner and using that agency’s standards.

 

  • Allowing Tribes access to the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing Program (HUD-VASH).

 

  • Promoting clean energy and sustainable projects by raising the total development cost ceilings cited as barriers to building energy-efficient housing.

 

An estimated 200,000 housing units are needed immediately in Indian Country and approximately 90,000 Native families are homeless or under-housed.     A 2009 Annual Homeless Assessment Report found that Native Americans make up 8% of the country’s homeless population, while they comprise less than 1% of the general population.  Nearly 46% of Native households are overcrowded, a rate almost three times that of the rest of the country, according to a 2010 report from the General Accounting Office.

 

In 2002, NAHASDA was reauthorized for five years, and was again reauthorized in 2008 for a five-year period which expires in September 2013. NAHASDA replaced funding under the 1937 Housing Act with Indian Housing Block Grants and provided Tribes with the choice of administering the block grant themselves or through their existing Indian Housing Authorities or their Tribally-designated housing entities.

 

HUD Grants $563M To Support Affordable Housing in Native Communities

Indian Country Today Media Network

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today awarded $563 million to 353 American Indian and Alaskan Native entities that represent 539 tribes across the U.S.  The funds, made available through HUD’s Indian Housing Block Grant  Program, are distributed annually to eligible Indian tribes or their tribally designated housing entities for a broad range of affordable housing activities.

“Hardworking American families in tribal communities should be able to live in communities where they have a fair shot to reach their potential,” HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan said in a press release. “The resources provided today will give these tribal communities the tools to maintain quality housing, prevent overcrowding, improve public safety and provide other basic building blocks of security and success.”

Indian Housing Block Grant funds primarily benefit hardworking families living on reservations or in other Native American communities, who don’t have the financial resources to maintain good homes, schools, or other key contributors to economic security. The amount of each grant is based on a formula that considers local needs and housing units under management by the tribe or designated entity.

Indian communities can use the funding for a variety of housing activities, including building affordable housing; providing assistance to existing housing that was developed under the Indian Housing Program authorized by the U.S. Housing Act of 1937; or other activities that create new approaches to provide more affordable housing for Native Americans. The funding is also used to offer housing services to eligible families and individuals; and establish crime prevention and safety measures. The block grant approach to housing was established by the Native American Housing Assistance and Self Determination Act of 1996.

Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/06/12/hud-grants-563m-support-affordable-housing-native-communities-149866