The Steering Committee of the Opportunity Starts at Home multi-sector affordable homes campaign sent two separate letters to members of Congress on March 17: the first urges housing investments in any potential infrastructure package and the second expresses support for the “Pathway to Stable and Affordable Housing for All Act.” Signatories include leading national organizations from a wide range of sectors, such as the National Education Association, NAACP, Catholic Charities USA, Children’s HealthWatch, Food Research & Action Center, JustLeadershipUSA, NLIHC, and more.
In the first letter, the campaign’s Steering Committee urges Congress to consider the following housing investments as part of a broader infrastructure package: at least $5 billion for the national Housing Trust Fund (HTF), which provides block grants to the states to increase the supply of affordable homes for those with the greatest needs; at least $15 billion to rehabilitate the public housing stock to preserve this asset for current tenants and future generations; and a targeted renters’ tax credit, which would reduce rents in state-designated housing developments to levels the lowest-income households can afford.
The second letter is addressed to the Senate and House sponsors of the “Pathway to Stable and Affordable Housing for All Act" (S.2946/H.R.5813), which would effectively end homelessness through full funding for rental assistance, robust investments in the HTF, and expanded funding for homelessness programs. The letter signatories expressed their strong support for the legislation and committed to helping advance it in Congress.
Also, in case you missed it from last week, nearly 50 multi-sector organizations from the campaign’s Steering Committee and Roundtable urged Congress to include emergency rental assistance funding in the legislative spending package aimed at addressing the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.
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