LIHTC Carryback Bill Introduced

Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) introduced legislation today aimed at boosting the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) market.

His bill, the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Recovery Act, introduces new flexibility into the program by allowing credits to be carried back up to five years for new housing and qualifying existing housing.

Affordable housing advocates have been pushing for this change as a way to make the credits more attractive to investors. An Ernst & Young study recently determined that this would bring in another $5 billion in private LIHTC investments.

The introduction of the bill was applauded by Enterprise and the Local Initiatives Support Corp.

"Congress’s support and passage of a carryback extension is urgently needed for developers to attract and retain the necessary investment capital to finance, build and rehabilitate affordable apartments,” Charles R. Werhane, president and CEO of Enterprise Community Investment, Inc. “Affordable housing is the cornerstone of success for people and families with low incomes across the country and so Enterprise urges Congress to quickly pass this critical legislation.”

The carryback extension is one of three consensus LIHTC proposals supported by more than 170 national, state and local LIHTC stakeholder organizations working together as part of the Affordable Rental Housing A.C.T.I.O.N. (A Call To Invest in Our Neighborhoods) campaign. For more information on the campaign, visit www.rentalhousingaction.org.

How QAPs Promote Supportive Housing

Low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) allocating agencies continue to promote the development of permanent supportive housing through the federal tax credit program.

Thirty-two jurisdiction implemented notable new policies or revised policies that encourage supportive housing development during the past two years, according to a new report by the Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH).

Forty-six LIHTC allocating agencies provide potential scoring advantages for supportive housing, and 41 agencies provide general scoring incentives encouraging permanent supportive housing or special-needs housing, says CSH.

Fifteen agencies promote supportive housing with set-asides of credit authority. Three agencies have a threshold requirement of dedicating 5 percent to 10 percent of a development's units for permanent supportive housing, and four additional agencies have general threshold requirements that promote permanent supportive housing, says CSH.

The study looks at each state's qualified allocation plan, which is used to allocate the tax credits to affordable housing developers.

For more, visit www.csh.org.

HUD to Exam Discrimination Against Gays

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)just launched a Web site to allow people to comment on the design of a new national study that will look at housing discrimination based sexual orientation and gender identity.

While there have been no national assessments of housing discrimination targeting the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, there is a body of evidence suggesting this sort of bias exists, says federal housing officials.

To learn more and to share comments on how HUD might test for discrimination, visit http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/HUD/LGBT_Discrimination_Study.

New Leaders Take Over Several HFAs

Here's a scorecard of some of the recent lineup changes at state housing finance agencies across the country.

The reasons for the leadership changes vary from retirement to resignations to moves made by governors.

Cris A. White (pictured) has become executive director and CEO of the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority. White has been with the agency for more than 20 years, most recently serving as the interim executive director and COO.
His appointment was announced today after a nationwide search.
White takes over the top post from Roy Alexander, who retired at the end of the last year.

In Iowa, Joe O'Hern was appointed director of the Iowa Finance Authority (IFA) by Gov. Chet Culver at the end of last year. This moves comes after Culver plucked Bret Mills from IFA to led the Iowa Department of Economic Development. O'Hern was interim director at the economic development agency and was deputy director at IFA before that.

And, in case you missed it, Gloria Materre took over as executive director of the Illinois Housing Development Authority last fall. She's the former deputy chief of staff under Gov. Pat Quinn. Materre succeeds DeShana Forney, who resigned "to pursue other career opportunities," according to the authority.

There will also be changes at the Missouri Housing Development Commission (MHDC), where Pete Ramsel recently resigned as executive director. "I am surprised by the sudden resignation of Pete Ramsel from MHDC," said Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder in a Feb. 3 statement. "Pete has been a consummate professional during his tenure at the commission. Over the past 15 years, Pete has worked tirelessly with commissioners and public and private entities to help strengthen our state by providing affordable housing for low-income Missourians." Last year, state Auditor Susan Montee issued a critical report of MHDC. The audit criticized the agency's procurement policies and procedures.

HUD Statement on GSEs Coming Soon

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan
said a statement on the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) is coming
soon.

This comment was made today during a media briefing on HUD’s proposed 2011 budget.
A reporter inquired why little was said in the spending plan about
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

HUD made a commitment last summer as part of its proposal on financial
regulatory reform that it would put forward a statement on the GSEs around
the time of the budget.

“We did not say that it would be included in the budget document itself,”
Donovan said. “We continue to be on track to release a statement in the near future on the GSEs.”

Nothing should be read into the fact there isn’t a fuller statement in the
budget document, according to Donovan.

SRO Residents Can Call 311 For Help

Residents living in San Francisco’s single-room occupancy (SRO) buildings can call the city’s 311 line to report building and health problems.

Local residents have typically used the 311 customer service center to report potholes, graffiti, and other outdoor issues. Housing advocates and city workers recently teamed to expand the call center to assist SRO residents, who can use the number to report building safety and health issues.

“Issues like rodents, inadequate heat or water, and block fire exits are a reality for low-income residents,” said Josh Vining, a community organizer for the Mission SRO Collaborative, the advocacy group that led the community effort. “311 now gives people a way to report unhealthy or unsafe conditions and to follow-up on the solution.”

As far as he knows, no other city provides a similar service for SRO residents. Vining says there are about 530 SRO buildings in San Francisco, housing an estimated 18,000 residents.

The call center will minimize duplicative requests to agencies and direct complaints to the appropriate department.

Mayor Gavin Newsom formed the center in 2007, and it’s been a touchy topic with some members of the Board of Supervisors, who want to cut it to save money.

Nonprofit Prepares to Close

An official with Tualatin Valley Housing Partners (TVHP) tells us that the 15-year-old nonprofit group is edging closer to shutting down by selling its affordable housing properties.

Potential buyers are busy performing due diligence as they consider taking over the Beaverton, Ore. group's portfolio of about seven properties. It doesn't look like there will be one buyer to take over all the communities. Instead, several groups will acquire individual developments.

The dispositions could take place in the next 60 days or so, according to Larry Iverson, board president.

TVHP is among the businesses that have been hit hard by the recession.

Grants and development fees dried up, some residents lost their jobs and could not pay their rents, and the financial markets were a mess. In addition, a former employee looks to have taken a modest amount of funds. The impropriety involved less than $10,000 and did not play a big role in TVHP’s closing, according to group.

We wonder how many other housing firms are at the tipping point.

CTCAC Schedule Released

The California Tax Credit Allocation Committee has released its proposed program schedule and deadlines for 2010.

Under the plan, applications for the first round of funding for low-income housing tax credits will be March 25. Look for application workshops throughout February.

The second-round deadline will be July 7.

For more information, visit www.treasurer.ca.gov/ctcac.

Talking Head Joins New Urbanism Panel

David Byrne, former frontman of the Talking Heads, has joined the lineup for the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) meeting in May.

He’s taking part on an opening panel at the “Rx for Healthy Places” conference in Atlanta. The rock star may sound like an unusual choice, but Byrne is a thoughtful commentator on urban life.

Byrne's book Bicycle Diaries chronicles how his use of bicycles as his primary form of transportation (and folding bicycles wherever he travels) taught him to view the world and its cities differently. His also wrote an essay for the Wall Street Journal this fall that described his perfect city.

"Riding his bicycles through the cities of the world, David Byrne is out front among the voices from diverse worlds — the arts, economics, music, public health — who are seeing connections between how we build neighborhoods, how we get around and how well we live," said John Norquist, CNU president and CEO, in a statement. "Whether its songs such as 'Once in a Lifetime' or other forms of art and writing, he's been a shrewd observer of modern life so it's a real joy to see him turn his eye to the built environment and the communities it supports."