The HOME Coalition, an advocacy group of 25 affordable housing organizations including NLIHC, is circulating a sign-on letter to appropriators in the House and Senate urging them to restore funding for the HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) program to at least $1.2 billion in FY17. HOME funding was cut in half from more than $1.8 billion in FY10 to $900 million in FY15. For FY16, HOME saw a modest boost in funding to $950 million, but that level of funding is insufficient to address the critical nationwide shortage of affordable housing.
The letter states, “HOME helps communities address the whole spectrum of housing needs, from homeownership to rental to rehabilitation and from urban to suburban and rural communities. Moreover, HOME plays a key role in ensuring the success of other housing programs, such as the Low Income Housing Tax Credit and U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Housing programs, because it often provides essential soft funding to fill financing gaps and make affordable housing developments financially feasible. No other federal program provides this flexible a financing source for addressing the housing needs of low-income families.”
National, state, and local groups, as well as government officials, are encouraged to sign the letter. The deadline for signing is March 1. NLIHC has signed the letter.
Sign onto the HOME Coalition letter here: http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/o/50954/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=18113
Learn more about the HOME Coalition here: https://www.ncsha.org/resource/home-coalition-advocacy-materials