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On the Issues
National Affordable Housing Trust Fund
There is a dearth of affordable housing in the Triangle and around the country, and I believe it is imperative that the federal government take action to increase the nation’s housing stock. The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University’s State of the Nation's Housing 2007 report states that in just one year, the number of households with housing cost burdens in excess of 30 percent of income climbed by 2.3 million, hitting a record 37.3 million in 2005. The number of American households paying more than half of their incomes on housing increased to 17 million in 2005.
One effective tool in addressing the affordable housing crisis is state and local housing trust funds. These trust funds typically utilize a dedicated source of revenue. According to the Housing Trust Fund Progress Report 2007 produced by the Center for Community Change, the number of state and local housing trust funds has grown from 432 to more than 600 in just five years. Public revenue collected by these funds now reaches $1.6 billion each year. These monies support, among other things, new construction, preservation of existing housing, home ownership assistance, emergency housing repairs, homeless shelters, and housing-related services.
I am a cosponsor of the National Affordable Housing Trust Fund Act (H.R. 2895), which seeks to build on the successes of state and local trust funds. The bill would establish a national affordable housing trust fund to build, rehabilitate or preserve 1.5 million housing units over the next ten years, without increasing the federal deficit. To finance the National Affordable Housing Trust Fund, the bill would divert surplus funds from the Federal Housing Administration mutual mortgage insurance fund and use a portion of the profits of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. I am pleased to report that the House approved H.R. 2895 by a vote of 264 to 148 on October 10, 2007. The bill now awaits action by the Senate.
As a member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee for Transportation and Housing and Urban Development, I will continue to support strong affordable housing initiatives in the 110th Congress.
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