WhiteHouse.gov Blog Feed: Office of Urban Affairs

A Model of Collaboration: White House Council on Strong Cities, Strong Communities

Mark Zuckerman — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 19:31:46 +0000

Last week, President Obama announced the creation of the White House Council on Strong Cities, Strong Communities —a new federal-local pilot that removes federal agency silos and allows federal government officials to work side-by-side with local leaders to create jobs, improve the business climate, and address local and regional challenges.

The SC2 Council will further the pilot’s work to develop creative ways to improve the way the Federal government engages with and supports local communities. By better aligning resources and engaging leaders across executive departments and agencies, communities across the country will have greater access to comprehensive, coordinated and customized technical assistance and planning resources to develop and implement their economic vision and strategies.

Last week, White House officials held a meeting with SC2 stakeholders to mark the six-month anniversary of teams operating on the ground in the six pilot cities, which includeChester, PA, Cleveland and Youngstown (Northeast Ohio Initiative), Detroit, Fresno, Memphis, and New Orleans. Local leaders, including SC2 Mayors Dave Bing, Mitch Landrieu, John Linder, Ashley Swearengin, and A C Wharton; city government staff; Federal agencies; members from SC2’s Community Solutions Teams; and our partners in the business, philanthropic, and non-profit communities, among others, compared notes and discussed their appreciation for the strong new federal-local partnership.

Strong Cities, Strong Communities has over 80 Federal employees directly supporting our six pilot cities. Community Solutions Teams work closely with local, regional, and national non-profits and philanthropies to help communities strengthen local capacity to create jobs, foster more competitive business climates, implement locally driven community and regional planning approaches that lead to sustained economic growth, and ensure that Federal assistance is more efficiently provided and used. Another important element of theSC2 pilot is the Fellowship Program, launched last month and accepting applications until March 30.

Taken together, the SC2 Council, the Community Solutions Teams on the ground, the Fellowship Program, and other features of the pilot are reinventing the way that the federal government partners with local communities. This new partnership is laying the foundation for a brighter economic future for our nation, neighborhood by neighborhood.

Mark Zuckerman is Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council.

HUD Hosts Strong Cities, Strong Communities Fellowship Program Twitter Town Hall

Erika Poethig — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 16:31:40 +0000

Ed. note: This is cross-posted from The HUDdle, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Official Blog

On February 28 at 3:30 p.m. EST, HUD Secretary Donovan and myself will host a Twitter town hall to launch the Strong Cities, Strong Communities Fellowship Program.

Launched by the Obama Administration last summer, the Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) initiative is a new way the federal government is working with cities in a more responsive and collaborative manner. Thirteen different federal agencies are working together with mayors and local governments across the U.S. to help them use existing federal resources more effectively to achieve their economic vision and goals. SC2 is at the heart of the Administration’s commitment to help revitalize and strengthen American cities, which have historically been, and continue to be, the backbone of our nation’s economy. Federal agencies engaged in SC2 work closely with local elected officials and leadership in the philanthropic, nonprofit and private sectors to improve the capacity of these cities to respond to immediate and future challenges.

To pilot this new, collaborative approach, five cities and one region were selected to receive Community Solution Teams comprised of federal staff from multiple agencies. Over the last four months, these teams have worked on the ground with local governments and their partners to accomplish tangible outcomes in Chester, PA; Detroit, MI; Fresno, CA; Memphis, TN; New Orleans, LA, and the Northeast Ohio cities of Cleveland and Youngstown.

Today, I am also pleased to announce the progress of another vital component of SC2 Fellowship Program. Over the next few months, a group of highly-skilled professionals who are committed to public service will be selected through a nationally competitive process to serve in these seven cities. To award these fellowships, HUD is partnering with the German Marshall Fund of the United States, Cleveland State University, and Virginia Tech University. Underwriting for the fellowships is provided by a generous gift from the Rockefeller Foundation.

During the Twitter town hall, Secretary Donovan and I will provide more details about how you can apply for the SC2 Fellowship Program and be a part of this new generation of innovative leaders committed to public service. We will tweet about eligibility, timing, selection criteria, and other details you will want to know to apply. The event will be streamed live on HUD’s website. Twitter users will be able to ask questions in advance and during the Town Hall using the hashtag #AskSOHUD.

SC2 is about effective government and fostering the type of change that can positively impact communities. By creating long-lasting partnerships with local governments, philanthropies, academic institutions, business, and non-profits, we can help revitalize and strengthen America’s cities.

The Secretary and I look forward to this conversation – join us next week.

Erica Poething is Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Office of Policy Development at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Building Neighborhoods of Opportunity

Racquel Russell — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 22:49:08 +0000

Today, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded $3.6 million in Choice Neighborhood grants to 13 communities across the country, which provides local leaders with flexible funds to transform high-poverty neighborhoods with distressed public housing into sustainable communities with mixed-income housing, safe streets, and economic opportunity.

Choice Neighborhoods is one of the signature programs of the White House Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative, which supports innovative, holistic strategies that bring the right partners together to help break the cycle of intergenerational poverty. Millions of Americans currently live in neighborhoods of highly concentrated poverty where struggling schools, high unemployment rates, distressed housing, persistent and violent crime cause disproportionately negative outcomes for their residents. The interconnected challenges in high-poverty neighborhoods require interconnected solutions to address the compounding effects of the multiple barriers facing children and families who live in these neighborhoods—the Choice Neighborhood grants announced today do just that.

The President’s approach to revitalizing neighborhoods of distress and providing economic opportunity focuses heavily on the link between housing and school improvements, recognizing that for neighborhoods to succeed they need high-quality educational opportunities. Just last month, the Department of Education announced the first round of Promise Neighborhood implementation grant winners and the second round of planning grant winners. Promise Neighborhoods, modeled off of the Harlem Children’s Zone, is the sister program to Choice Neighborhoods and focuses on significantly improving the educational and developmental outcomes of children and youth in our most distressed communities, from cradle to career, and to transform those communities by creating great schools at the center.

A child’s zip code should never determine his or her life opportunities and through the work of the White House Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative’s flagship programs, Choice Neighborhoods and Promise Neighborhoods, we are providing the supports necessary to transform neighborhoods of distress into neighborhoods of opportunity.

Racquel Russell is a Special Assistant to the President for Mobility and Opportunity in the White House Domestic Policy Council.

Improving Affordable Housing Delivery Across Federal Agencies

Derek Douglas — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 18:38:23 +0000

Today, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development released the report “Federal Rental Alignment: Administrative Proposals” which lays out a broad vision for improving the delivery and operation of affordable housing across the country. The initiatives in this report – many of which are already being implemented - will streamline federal housing requirements to support more efficient delivery of affordable housing, and help state and federal agencies’ staff to better serve low-income families who rent their homes. The Administration's goal is to make government work better by reducing the unintended consequences associated with the reality of housing finance today – multiple overlapping public investments on a given rental property.

The report includes ten initiatives proposed by the Rental Policy Working Group that will more efficiently align rental programs across government agencies, including inspections, financial reporting, appraisals, energy efficiency standards, and fair housing compliance enforcement, among others. And every one of these improvements can be done without legislation or new funding, through a combination of education, outreach, issuing Agency guidance, and rule changes.

This effort dates back to 2010 when the White House Domestic Policy Council created the interagency Rental Policy Working Group (RPWG) with the Departments of Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, and the Treasury. The RPWG convened several conferences at the White House with local and state housing agencies and property owners and developers to discuss best practices in affordable housing delivery.

As we begin implementation of these initiatives, we look forward to sharing our progress with you and hope you will keep in touch with our efforts through the Domestic Policy Council Urban Affairs blog and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's site.

Derek Douglas is a Special Assistant to the President for Urban Affairs in the White House Domestic Policy Council

Strong Cities, Strong Communities Fellowship Program

Erika Poething — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:23:56 +0000

Ed. note: This blog is cross-posted from blog.hud.gov.

This summer, the Obama Administration announced the launch of the Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) Initiative. This new interagency pilot initiative is designed to spark economic growth in local communities while ensuring taxpayer dollars are used wisely and efficiently. SC2 will break the federal government out of its traditional roles to partner with local governments more effectively.

As part of this initiative, a new fellowship program will select, train, and place early to mid-career professionals to serve multi-year terms in the cities of Chester, PA; Cleveland, OH; Detroit, MI; Fresno, CA; Memphis, TN; and New Orleans, LA and assist them in their economic revitalization efforts. Up to 30 fellows will be deployed to one of these six pilot cities and will be integral to creating partnerships among local community organizations, anchor institutions, businesses, foundations and other government agencies, with the goal of helping to leverage federal investments and increase economic impacts.

Today HUD announced the selection of the German Marshall Fund (GMF) as the recipient of a $2.5 million award to manage the SC2 fellowship program. The funding is donated by the Rockefeller Foundation. GMF will be responsible for implementing and administering the fellowship program by:

Identifying, selecting and recruiting qualified candidates for the fellowship program;
Coordinating with local organizations in each pilot city;
Working with each pilot city to ensure that fellows are well integrated within their pilot city and working on strategic projects;
Developing orientation materials for fellows entering the program;
Developing or applying existing training curriculum that will equip fellows with the fundamental knowledge, tools and skills they would need to be successful in the program; and
Identifying additional training and mentoring opportunities fellows may require as they progress through the program.

Once selected and assigned to cities, the SC2 Fellows will take on strategic responsibilities and be immersed in the core operations of the pilot city; engage in peer-to-peer learning opportunities and become active leaders in their pilot city; and be intensely engaged and committed to the redevelopment of the city so that they remain working in the city after the end of the program.

Erica Poething is Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Office of Policy Development at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Ending Homelessness in New Orleans

Derek Douglas — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 17:46:48 +0000

Yesterday, the New Orleans Homeless Services Working Group, an official Mayoral Advisory Committee, unveiled the strategic 10-year plan to end homelessness in New Orleans. The Obama Administration’s Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) initiative played a key part in helping develop this cross-cutting plan. A member of the SC2 team in New Orleans, the Department of Veterans Affairs, has partnered with the City to redevelop a portion of the downtown VA Hospital site into a Homeless Community Resource Center. This project is one of the cornerstones of the City's plan. To find out more about this announcement, please visit the City of New Orleans Web site.

Derek Douglas is Special Assistant to the President for Urban Affairs.

Pilot Project Aims to Streamline Government Policies for Affordable Housing Developers

Derek Douglas — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 17:51:40 +0000

On November 7th, Wisconsin and Michigan signed agreements as part of an Administration pilot initiative that would reduce regulatory burden on developers of federally-subsidized affordable rental housing and better coordinate intergovernmental oversight. As part of the Obama Administration's commitment to better coordinated federal rental policy, U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, and Treasury are working with their housing finance agency counterparts at the state level in Wisconsin, Michigan, Washington, Minnesota, Oregon and Ohio to eliminate duplicative physical inspections of rental housing subsidized through more than one public funding source. These agreements save taxpayers money, reduce unnecessary regulatory oversight, and ease the burden on low-income working families who must take time away from work to allow inspectors into their rental apartments.

Derek Douglas is Special Assistant to the President on Urban Policy.

Federal Rental Alignment

Derek Douglas — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 16:58:34 +0000

This July 27th, the White House’s Domestic Policy Council (DPC) is announcing the launch of two Federal ‘alignment pilots’ in a total of ten states to better serve low-income families that rent, while reducing regulatory burden on affordable housing developers and owners. At a Rental Alignment Conference at the White House, Federal, State, local, and private-sector stakeholders will kick-off these pilots and will discuss progress being made on a number of other administrative solutions to better align and utilize affordable rental housing programs administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of the Treasury. The administrative solutions that are being proposed for implementation can be found here.

For owners, developers, tenants, and local communities working to create and preserve affordable housing, federal funds often make up a significant share of a property’s financing structure. However, owners and developers can be burdened by overlapping administrative requirements associated with those federal affordable housing programs. Having affordable housing programs supported and administered separately by different Federal Departments has generally been good for the rental housing field, as different programs respond to different needs. However, over time, developers and owners of affordable housing have become increasingly reliant on multi-layered finance and subsidy structures. But these programs have not always been designed well to work with each other.

Responding to this need for better coordinated Federal rental policy, last year the White House’s Domestic Policy Council established the interagency Rental Policy Working Group. As part of its coordinating efforts, the Rental Policy Working Group has engaged State, local, individual and private stakeholders to identify administrative changes that could increase overall programmatic efficiency and further enhance the ability of communities to create and preserve affordable housing. Through this process, recommendations have been developed to align physical inspections, financial reporting, appraisals, market studies, capital needs assessment, energy efficiency, fair housing enforcement compliance, subsidy layering reviews, and tenant income certifications.

Of these opportunities, two in particular – physical inspections and subsidy layering reviews – were deemed to be particularly ripe for immediate implementation as the redundancies were glaringly obvious. A property that has multiple Federal funding sources may be subject to duplicative physical inspections using multiple physical inspection standards. Similarly, most Federal housing programs require agencies to certify that all subsidies provided to a particular affordable housing development do not exceed its costs with each program performing a nearly similar review of these multiple subsidy sources. Through the launch of pilots, where local solutions can be supported, tested, and potentially taken to scale, Federal, State, local, and private partners can begin to realize cost and time savings, as well as to enable program dollars to be put to use more quickly, ensuring that low-income families can continue to have access to affordable rental housing when it is needed most.

The upcoming Rental Alignment Conference will discuss the pilots being launched in ten states, as well as the future direction of other key cost- and time-saving administrative alignments that will help ensure affordable rental housing’s continued success in serving our most rent-burdened and at-risk families. We look forward to your feedback.

Derek Douglas is the Special Assistant to the President for Urban Affairs

Obama Administration Announces New Grants to Support Community Development

Derek Douglas — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 16:37:18 +0000

President Obama is committed to supporting American communities, helping them become more competitive, sustainable and inclusive and improving the quality of life for all citizens. But he also knows that every neighborhood, town, city and suburb is unique, and has its own vision for growth and development. That’s why the Obama Administration is working every day to find new ways to make our communities stronger by ensuring that the federal government is addressing real needs and supporting communities from the bottom up. As part of that effort, the Administration is proud that two new capacity-building grants have been announced – grants from the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative and the Partnership for Sustainable Communities that will support neighborhoods to develop and execute on their visions for growth and ensure that investments in the community are made strategically to maximize impact.

Many communities around the country have already been touched by the important efforts of the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative (NRI), a White House led partnership among the Departments of Education, Housing and Urban Development, Justice, Health and Human Services, and Treasury. NRI supports the transformation of distressed neighborhoods into neighborhoods of opportunity where children can get a good education, adults can get good jobs, and families have access to decent quality housing, transportation, safe streets and clean air and water. To continue this important work, the White House is excited to report that the Department of Justice recently announced that the new Building Neighborhood Capacity Program (BNCP) is now accepting grant applications for its principal Training and Technical Assistance Coordinator (TTA Coordinator). The BNCP focuses on the nation’s neediest neighborhoods, those that struggle with such issues as crime, poor health, struggling schools, inadequate housing, and access to employment, and seeks to assist them in comprehensive planning and development activities that will develop neighborhood capacity to begin and sustain the long-term process of rebuilding and revitalization.

The Building Neighborhood Capacity Training and Technical Assistance Coordinator (pdf) program is being jointly funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, Office of Justice Programs, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the U.S. Department of Education. Through the BNCP, five neighborhoods will be competitively selected by the TTA Coordinator, in consultation with the federal partners, and offered a range of training and technical assistance (TTA) to help them begin or sustain the process of revitalization, guided by comprehensive neighborhood revitalization plans, in concert with relevant local and state plans and planning processes.

Similarly, the Partnership for Sustainable Communities (PSC) – a collaboration between the Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency that works to coordinate federal housing, transportation, water, and other infrastructure investments to make neighborhoods more prosperous, allow people to live closer to jobs, save households time and money, and reduce pollution – has recognized the critical need among communities for greater support toward building capacity in order to meet their sustainability and livability. To respond to this need, HUD and EPA recently announced a $5.65 million competitive program aimed at strengthening the capacity of existing grantees from each agency to create more housing choices, make transportation more efficient and reliable, and support vibrant and healthy neighborhoods for American families. Through this program, the Partnership will identify and work with intermediaries to foster a national coalition and leadership network of the Sustainable Communities Grantees to facilitate the exchange of successful strategies, lessons learned, emerging tools and public engagement strategies, and approaches for avoiding or minimizing pitfalls, all with an eye towards improving the quality of life in the communities in which we live. You can get more information and apply for funding.

President Obama believes that the role of the federal government is to support American communities with innovative, direct, bottom-up support. These two new grant programs introduced by the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative and the Partnership for Sustainable Communities are another important effort by the Administration to meet this objective by investing in American places, helping build new foundations for growth and improve the quality of life for American citizens.

Derek Douglas is Special Assistant to the President for Urban Affairs in the White House Domestic Policy Council.

Announcing the Urban Waters Federal Partnership: Helping Communities Revitalize Their Local Waters through Increased Federal Collaboration

Melody Barnes — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 18:12:19 +0000

For those of us who are city dwellers, it may not be at the forefront of our minds to remember that our cities and towns are filled with tremendous natural resources and amazing natural beauty. Our rivers, streams and lakes provide not only drinking water but a place for recreation and critical avenues for economic development and growth in our cities and towns. When our waters become unhealthy and polluted -- or we are cut off from local waterways by poorly placed roads, highways and industrial infrastructure -- we cannot take full advantage of the economic, environmental and social assets that our waters provide. President Obama believes that all Americans deserve access to clean rivers, streams and lakes, and that a community’s economy and health benefit from such access. He also believes that it is our job as the federal government to support communities as they develop visions for growth, development and use of natural resources, while coordinating federal investments so that we are getting the most out of every dollar.

That’s why I was so proud today to stand with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson and U.S. Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar as well as other Administration colleagues, Senator Ben Cardin, and local city partners to announce a new federal partnership that will reconnect urban communities, particularly those that are overburdened or economically distressed, with their waterways by improving coordination among federal agencies and collaborating with community-led revitalization efforts.

The Urban Waters Federal Partnership(UWFP) is comprised of 11 federal agencies and represents an innovative union of federal agencies that focus on both natural resources and economic development. The idea is to increase collaboration across the federal government and with local partners on the ground to revitalize polluted urban waterways in under-served cities across the country, stimulating local economies, creating local jobs, improving communities and protecting American’s health in the process.

Breaking down federal silos and creating stronger collaborations across the federal government and with local communities is not new to this Administration. Led by EPA, DOI, the Departments of Agriculture and Housing and Urban Development, and coordinated by my team in the White House Domestic Policy Council, the UWFP closely aligns with and advances the work of the White House’s other place-based efforts, including the Partnership for Sustainable Communities,in revitalizing communities, creating jobs and improving the quality of life in cities and towns across the nation. These programs deliver on a commitment by the Administration to ensure that federal dollars get invested wisely and strategically to maximize their impact and improve the lives of American citizens.

The UWFP will focus its initial efforts on seven pilot cities – Baltimore, the Bronx, Denver, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Northwest Indiana and Washington – that will each benefit from the interagency approach as they seek to revitalize their urban waters. This morning, we visited Baltimore, MD and learned how the UWFP will support revitalization efforts of the Patapsco Watershed by planting trees around Baltimore to reduce run-off, repaving alleys and streets leading to the river to limit pollution, and putting together a Green Infrastructure Plan with the city government. The 375,000-acre Patapsco River Watershed spans four counties, flows to the Baltimore City Harbor, and ultimately into the Chesapeake Bay, one of the most important estuaries in the world, which means this effort will benefit not only Baltimore City but forested areas, rural areas, productive farms, and surrounding suburban, urban, and industrial areas as well.

Ultimately, the Urban Waters Federal Partnership is about more efficient and effective federal investment in American communities. Through strengthened collaborations between local, state and federal governments as well as with businesses, NGOs and citizens, we know we can revitalize economies, protect health, and improve the quality of life of our communities.

For more information visit: www.urbanwaters.gov

Investing in Stronger Cities and Stronger Regions for a Stronger America

Melody Barnes — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 16:22:11 +0000

Tuesday, I spoke to the National Urban League to celebrate their long running dedication to the idea that economic empowerment can elevate underserved urban communities. I also discussed how the President’s vision for how America can win the future means making sure all our neighborhoods, cities and regions – and the men, women and children who live in them -- are well-equipped for the 21st century. Economic growth needs to be inclusive and the opportunities for upward mobility should be widely shared. Through this Administration’s new place-based approach, we are making smart investments and encouraging smart planning as demonstrated by the Partnership for Sustainable Communities; we are helping create communities where people want to live and do business with efforts like the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative; and we are strategically investing in our future through place-based efforts like the Regional Innovation Clusters Initiative.

The President has said that strong cities are the building blocks of strong regions, and strong regions are essential for a strong America. The investments that we’ve made to strengthen our economy, revitalize our communities, and strengthen our education system will leave our country – and all her citizens -- standing on stronger ground than ever before.

To read the full remarks, please click here.

Melody Barnes is Director of the Domestic Policy Council.

Winning the Future in America’s Cities and Metropolitan Areas

Derek Douglas — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 17:16:29 +0000

The President’s Budget recognizes that, to win the future, we must make a strong commitment to strategically invest in our Nation’s regions, cities, and neighborhoods – indeed, it is hard to imagine out-innovating, out-educating, and out-building our global competitors and creating the jobs and industries of tomorrow without strong and economically vibrant cities and regions. At the same time, we recognize that the federal investments we make in pursuit of winning the future must be inclusive of all families and communities, so that the opportunities we create are widely shared.

With respect to the Administration’s urban and metropolitan policy priorities, the Budget proposes a series of coordinated investments around our three signature interagency place-based initiatives: Regional Innovation Clusters (RIC), Partnership for Sustainable Communities (PSC), and the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative (NRI). These place-based initiatives represent a new approach to the way the Federal Government does business – by breaking down silos, catalyzing local and regional collaboration, emphasizing evidence-driven and merit-based investments, and supporting communities on the ground in more targeted and flexible ways.

For each of the three place-based initiatives, the Budget continues the Administration’s support for the signature programs, while also proposing new investments in critical areas. For example, the Budget maintains support for NRI programs such as Promise Neighborhoods, Choice Neighborhoods, and the Healthy Food Financing Initiative, for PSC programs like HUD’s Regional Planning Grants and EPA’s Brownfields, and for RIC programs such as SBA’s Regional Economic Clusters grants and EDA’s I6 Challenge grants. At the same time, the Budget proposes innovative and targeted new investments, like the multi-agency Neighborhood Revitalization Grants for NRI, DOT’s transportation reauthorization proposal that includes more funding for transit and a comprehensive livability program, and the new Growth Zones proposal involving EDA, Treasury, HUD and USDA.

The President’s 2012 Budget is a tough, but responsible, proposal that requires us to live within our means so that we can invest in the future. In the process, the Budget maintains our commitment to invest in our Nation’s cities and metropolitan areas, so that we can grow the economy, create jobs, and strengthen our urban communities.

For more information about how the 2012 Budget invests in winning the future for America’s cities and metropolitan areas please visit the Budget Fact Sheet on Cities and Metropolitan Areas.

Urban Update: Aligning Federal Rental Housing Policy

Derek Douglas — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 22:00:02 +0000

The White House’s Domestic Policy Council (DPC) established an interagency Rental Policy Working Group in early 2010 to respond to the need for better coordination of Federal rental policy. The White House hosted two gatherings in July 2010 to solicit suggestions for improved rental policy coordination from affordable rental housing developers and managers and from State and local officials. These stakeholders identified many issue areas where administrative changes could increase overall programmatic efficiency and reduce the burdens on the public. The objective was to seek better alignment of rental policy among three agencies that have significant affordable housing programs (Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of Agriculture and Department of the Treasury) in order to reduce costs and paperwork obligations for property owners, developers, managers, and State and local governments. The meetings explored a broad range of issues and ideas. The notes from those meetings are available here.

The Rental Policy Working Group and alignment leaders assembled interagency teams to consider the recommendations provided by participants in the July gatherings. They tasked the teams to survey current policy and, in consultation with State and local agencies and stakeholder groups, to find opportunities for greater Federal alignment. The areas that were identified as in particular need of Federal coordination included physical inspections, operating budgets and financial reporting, and appraisals and market studies. The teams are also working on capital needs assessment, energy efficiency, compliance, subsidy layering, and tenant income definition.

Many of the issues raised at the July gatherings reflect the simple fact that much Federal funding to support affordable rental housing flows through programs administered separately by the three Federal Departments. Each Department receives funds based on its Department’s appropriations and each Department administers programs authorized by their respective legislative committees. This decentralized administration of rental housing policy has generally been good for the rental housing field, as different programs respond to different needs and draw on the different strengths of the agencies that administer them. It is also true; however, that separate programs and budget streams have created, over time, some inconsistencies and needless overlaps in administrative requirements. As developers and owners of affordable housing become more sophisticated, they increasingly rely on multi-layered finance and subsidy structures, which are supported by multiple Federal programs. These multiple sources of support bring with them overlapping certifications, reporting, and other duplications that can cause unnecessary complexity and cost. In keeping with the Administration’s efforts to identify and use less burdensome tools for achieving policy ends, the interagency Rental Policy Working Group will be seeking ways to align the various rental housing programs with each other and within their own Departments.

Derek Douglas is the Special Assistant to the President for Urban Policy in the Domestic Policy Council.

12/17/2010 WH Urban Affairs Newsletter

Jack Madans — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 18:19:12 +0000

Top News

President Obama Signs Tax Relief and Unemployment Insurance Bill into Law: President Obama took action this Friday to secure vital tax relief and investments for American workers that will create jobs and accelerate economic growth. Surrounded by Democrats and Republicans, the President signed the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act into law. The bill ensures that 7 million Americans will not lose unemployment benefits and that working families will not face over $3,000 in new taxes. The package protects American workers with an extension of middle class tax cuts, a full year of emergency unemployment insurance benefits, and a $120 billion payroll tax cut. The package moves to spur growth by also extending the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), the Child Tax Credit (CTC), and the American Opportunity Tax Credit.

HHS Announces an Additional $670 Million to Help Keep the Heat On: Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced the availability of more than $670 million to states to help low income families with their heating bills this winter. These funds represent additional grants to states under the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP helps eligible families pay the costs of heating and insulating their homes in the winter, and cooling their homes in the summer. HHS is releasing this additional allocation of LIHEAP funds now to ensure that states have resources available to support their energy assistance programs as the weather turns colder.

Obama Administration Convenes Environmental Leaders at Historic White House Environmental Justice Forum Featuring Five Cabinet Secretaries: Five Cabinet secretaries and senior officials from a wide range of federal agencies and offices participated in the first White House Forum on Environmental Justice today, illustrating the Obama administration’s commitment to ensuring all Americans have strong federal protection from environmental and health hazards. Five Cabinet secretaries and senior officials from a wide range of federal agencies and offices participated in the first White House Forum on Environmental Justice today, illustrating the Obama administration’s commitment to ensuring all Americans have strong federal protection from environmental and health hazards.

Department of Energy Finalizes Loan Guarantee to Support World's Largest Wind Project: Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced that a partial loan guarantee for a $1.3 billion loan has been finalized to support the world's largest wind farm. The loan will finance the Caithness Shepherds Flat project, an 845-megawatt wind generation facility located in eastern Oregon. Once completed, the project will sell 100 percent of the power and renewable energy credits generated to Southern California Edison under 20-year fixed price power purchase agreements. The Department of Energy, through the Loan Programs Office, has issued loan guarantees or offered conditional commitments for loan guarantees to support 16 clean energy projects totaling nearly $16.5 billion.

HUD to Investigate Allegations that Mortgage Lenders Discriminate Against African American and Latino Loan Seekers: The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced that it is launching multiple investigations to determine if mortgage lenders illegally deny qualified African American and Latino borrowers’ access to credit. The investigations are in response to 22 complaints the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) filed with HUD alleging that the particular home lending practices deny FHA-insured loans to African Americans and Latinos with credit scores as high as 640. People who believe they are the victims of housing discrimination should contact HUD.

Features

The States Step Up: Bruce Katz and Amy Liu of the Brookings Metropolitan Program discuss how states can deliver a new economy: In January, 37 state governors, many of them new, will take office facing daunting economic and budget challenges. Bruce Katz, Jennifer Bradley and Amy Liu say that these governors must look to the economic power of their metropolitan areas and the tools—like infrastructure banks and regional business plans—to maximize these areas.

Funding Opportunities

NEW EDA’s Planning and Local Technical Assistance Programs - Deadline Rolling: EDA’s Planning and Local Technical Assistance Programs are two of the agency’s six assistance programs. Under the Planning Program, EDA provides assistance to eligible districts, cities, and states to create regional economic development plans in order to stimulate and guide the economic development efforts of a community or region. EDA’s Local Technical Assistance Program helps eligible recipients fill the knowledge and information gaps that may prevent leaders in the public and nonprofit sectors in economically distressed regions from making optimal decisions on local economic development issues.

Choice Neighborhood Planning and Implementation Grants - Deadline Dec 7th: The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced $65 million in competitive Choice Neighborhoods pilot grants for redevelopment of both public and other HUD-assisted housing properties. The program also widens the traditional pool of eligible applicants by allowing local governments, nonprofits and for-profit developers that submit joint applications with a public entity to apply. HUD anticipates funding 12-15 Planning Grants with a maximum award of $250,000 each and approximately 2-4 implementation grants at a maximum of $31 million each.

Capital Fund Education and Training Community Facilities Program - Deadline Jan 14: The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today that it is offering $35 million to public housing authorities to develop facilities that will provide early childhood and adult education, and/or job training programs for public housing residents. The maximum grant award for the Capitol Fund Education and Training Community Facilities Program (CFCF) is $5 million.

NEW SBA Community Advantage Initiative Opens 7(a) Loan Program To CDFIs - Deadline March 15: In an effort to expand access to capital for small businesses and entrepreneurs in underserved communities across the nation, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has announced the creation of a new loan initiative named Community Advantage. This new program will increase the number of lower-dollar loans into these underserved communities by allowing Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), and other mission-focused lenders, to originate SBA 7(a) loans up to $250,000.

12.3.2010 Urban Affairs Newsletter

Derek Douglas — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 01:44:48 +0000

Top News

President Obama Urges an Extension of Unemployment Insurance: Speaking to a White House meeting for newly elected Governors this week, President Obama urged Congress to extend emergency Unemployment Insurance. Failure by Congress to act on extending unemployment benefits will have stark consequences for Americans this holiday season, according to a new report from the White House Council of Economic Advisers. The President cited the report’s findings that two million Americans in December alone – and nearly seven million over the course of the next year – will lose the temporary support that helps them keep food on the table and make ends meet while they search for a job if Congress fails to act.

The First Lady Lauds Passage of Childhood Nutrition Legislation: First Lady Michelle Obama joined children's and health advocates in applauding passage of the “Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act”. The legislation expands eligibility for school meals programs, establishes nutrition standards for all foods sold in schools and provides a 6-cent increase for each school lunch to help cafeterias serve healthier meals. The bill was a priority for first lady Michelle Obama and her Let's Move! campaign to fight childhood obesity.

HUD Launches New One-Stop Website for Economic and Housing Data: This week HUD launched a new website that displays an interactive map of the U.S. allowing visitors an intuitive way to seek data in a number of areas of geography – from an entire region down to a particular county. The website consolidates a wide variety of economic and housing market data from the Census Bureau, Labor Department, State and Local governments, housing industry sources, as well as HUD’s own field economists. The site features a variety of functions to analyze housing markets as well as a “Regional Narratives” tool providing broad overviews of economic and housing market trends within ten regions of the U.S.

HHS announces the nation’s new health promotion and disease prevention agenda: Secretary Sebelius unveiled Healthy People 2020, the nation’s new 10-year goals and objectives for health promotion and disease prevention. The Healthy People initiative is grounded in the principle that setting national objectives and monitoring progress can motivate action, and indeed, in just the last decade, preliminary analyses indicate that the country has either progressed toward or met 71 percent of its Healthy People targets. More than 8,000 comments were considered in drafting a comprehensive set of objectives ranging from blood disorders to sleep health.

HUD Secretary Donovan announces that Recovery Act Funding Has Prevented or Ended Homelessness for Over 750,000 Americans: Secretary Donovan announced today that homelessness for 750,000 Americans was prevented or ended, thanks to HUD’s Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Program (HPRP), funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The program provided $1.5 billion to local communities to keep families in their homes or help them find other affordable housing after a sudden financial crisis, which might have otherwise led to homelessness.

Department of Energy Announces Technical Assistance Projects to Improve Energy Use in Commercial Buildings: During a live online chat at the White House earlier today, Secretary Steven Chu announced that 24 projects are receiving a total of $21 million in technical assistance to dramatically reduce the energy used in their commercial buildings. This initiative, supported with funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will connect commercial building owners and operators with multidisciplinary teams including researchers at DOE's National Laboratories and private sector building experts. The teams will design, construct, measure, and test low-energy building plans, and will help accelerate the deployment of cost-effective energy-saving measures in commercial buildings across the United States.

Feature

Ashoka’s Changemakers: Sustainable Urban Housing Collaboration: Do you have an idea to make cities more sustainable and inclusive? The Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of State have partnered with the American Planning Association and the Rockefeller foundation to launch a global competition for new ideas. The Sustainable Urban Housing: Collaborating for Livable and Inclusive Cities competition is being launched in anticipation of the 2012 Summit of the Americas, and in support of U.S. President Barack Obama’s Energy and Climate Partnership for the Americas (ECPA).
Submit your solutions, or nominate a project, in this competition to collaborate on sustainable urban housing for livable and inclusive cities.

Funding Opportunities

DOL Competition for YouthBuild grants Deadline Dec. 3: The Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration announced grants totaling $130 million for the YouthBuild program, an alternative education program that provides classroom instruction and construction skills training to at-risk individuals ages 16 to 24. Awards will be give to organizations that embody the YouthBuild model of balancing in school learning that leads to the achievement of a high school diploma or passing the General Education Development (GED) test, and construction skills training that prepares youth for career placement. YouthBuild grantees will tap the energies and talents of disadvantaged youth to increase the supply of permanent affordable housing for homeless individuals and low-income families.

Choice Neighborhood Planning and Implementation Grants Deadline Dec 7th: The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced $65 million in competitive Choice Neighborhoods pilot grants for redevelopment of both public and other HUD-assisted housing properties. The program also widens the traditional pool of eligible applicants by allowing local governments, nonprofits and for-profit developers that submit joint applications with a public entity to apply. HUD anticipates funding 12-15 Planning Grants with a maximum award of $250,000 each and approximately 2-4 implementation grants at a maximum of $31 million each.

Capital Fund Education and Training Community Facilities Program Deadline Jan 14: The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today that it is offering $35 million to public housing authorities to develop facilities that will provide early childhood and adult education, and/or job training programs for public housing residents. The maximum grant award for the Capitol Fund Education and Training Community Facilities Program (CFCF) is $5 million.

11.12.2010 Urban Affairs Newsletter

Derek Douglas — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 01:11:09 +0000

Top News

President Obama Pushes American Economic Competitiveness on Visit to India: As part of his trip through Asia, President Obama highlighted the relationship between America and India, the world’s two largest democracies, as one of the world’s fastest growing trade and investment relationships. As part of the National Export Initiative, President Obama noted that India is a key market for U.S. exports. More than $14.9 billion in future trade was announced in conjunction with the President’s trip, totaling $9.5 billion in U.S. export content and supporting an estimated 53,670 U.S. jobs. These cross-border collaborations, both public and private, underpin the expanding U.S.-India strategic partnership, contributing to economic growth and development in both countries.

Vice President Biden Announces Actions to Increase Energy Savings for Families: At a Middle Class Task Force event Vice President Biden announced a series of federal actions designed to lay the groundwork for a strong American home energy retrofit industry. These actions include a new Home Energy Score program that will help homeowners make cost-effective decisions about home energy improvements and a new retrofit financing program called PowerSaver. “Together, these programs will grow the home retrofit industry and help middle class families save money and energy,” said Vice President Biden.

Secretary Shinseki Commemorates Veterans Day, Renews Commitment to Veterans: While honoring Veterans at Arlington National Cemetary this Thursday, Veterans Affairs Secretary Shinseki noted the significant investments in Veterans benefits and services over the past 19 months: a 16 percent VA budget increase last year and a 10 percent increase in the 2011 budget request. He said this is making it possible to increase Veterans’ access to benefits, help end the disability claims backlog, and eliminate Veterans’ homelessness by 2015. Under Shinseki, VA is taking unprecedented steps to reach out to Veterans and their families with a television ad campaign, a new VA blog, and other social media initiatives, and outreach teams traveling throughout rural communities. The goal is to let Veterans and their families know what services they are eligible for and how to access them.

Department of Education Releases Finalized Education Technology Plan: Secretary Arne Duncan today released the Department of Education's National Education Technology Plan for transforming American education through technology, a process to create an engaging state-of-the-art, cradle-to-college school system nationwide. Improving technology is a crucial component of the Administration's effort to have America lead the world in college completion by 2020 and help close the achievement gap.

HHS and DOJ Team Up to Crack Down on Healthcare Fraud: Health and Human Services: (HHS) Secretary, Kathleen Sebelius, and Attorney General Eric Holder visited Brooklyn, New York where they participated in the third regional health care fraud prevention summit. HHS introduced a new tool for medical students called A Roadmap for New Physicians: Avoiding Medicare and Medicaid Fraud Abuse. The Affordable Care Act provided an additional $350 million for tools and resources to fight fraud over the next ten years. These investments in enforcement pay for themselves many times over. Since 2009, the Administration’s anti-fraud efforts put $2.51 billion back in the Medicare Trust Fund.

EPA Issues Guidance for State/Local Pollution Permitting:The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is making available guidance and tools to help state and local air permitting authorities identify cost-effective pollution reduction options for greenhouse gases (GHGs) under the Clean Air Act. In January 2011, industries that are large emitters of GHGs, and are planning to build new facilities or make major modifications to existing ones, will work with permitting authorities to identify and implement best practices to minimize their GHGs.

The Department of Labor Announces Awards for State Workforce Database: Secretary Solis announced $12.2 million to 13 states through the Workforce Data Quality Initiative. These funds will enable States to build or expand databases to conduct research and analysis aimed at pinpointing the effectiveness of employment and training programs to better inform workforce system customers. Over the three-year grant period, States will improve the analysis of education and training programs, but also provide user-friendly information to help people select the training and education programs that best suit their needs.

Funding Opportunities

Community Health Centers New Access Points Program: Deadline Nov. 17: The Department of Health and Human Service’s Health Resources and Services Administration seeks applicants for up to $250 million in competitive 2-year grants to support development of New Access Points, new full-time service community health delivery sites that provide comprehensive primary and preventive health care services to improve health of, and decrease health disparities of, medically underserved and vulnerable populations. Organizations eligible to compete for the 350 awards include public or private non-profit entities, including tribal, faith-based and community-based organizations.

HUD Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Grants: Deadline Nov. 18: The Department of Housing and Urban Development made $1.68 million available through the CoC Homeless Assistance Programs, a set of three competitively-awarded programs created to address the problems of homelessness in a comprehensive manner with other federal agencies. CoC programs aim to reduce the incidence of homelessness in Continuum of Care communities by assisting homeless individuals and families move to self-sufficiency and permanent housing. Eligible services include transitional housing, permanent supportive housing and other services to help homeless persons transition from homelessness to living independently, programs providing rental assistance for homeless individuals with disabilities; and programs offering Section 8 rental assistance for moderate rehabilitation of buildings with single-room dwellings, designed for individual use.

Treasury Grants for Community Development Financial Institutions: Deadline Nov. 19: The Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) today announced grants providing up to $135 million in Financial and Technical Assistance awards. The awards will support Community Development Financial Institutions providing affordable financing and related services to low-income communities and populations that lack access to credit, capital and financial services.

HUD Hope VI Grants: Deadline Nov. 22: The Department of Housing and Urban Development is seeking applicants for $124 million in grants to transform severely distressed public housing developments. Grant funds may be used for an array of activities, including: demolition of severely distressed public housing; acquisition of sites for off-site construction; capital costs of major rehabilitation, new construction and other physical improvements; and community and supportive service programs for residents, including those relocated as a result of revitalization efforts. It is anticipated that five to six grant awards will be made, with a maximum award of $22 million each.

Labor Competition for YouthBuild grants: Deadline Dec. 3: The Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration announced grants totaling $130 million for the YouthBuild program, an alternative education program that provides classroom instruction and construction skills training to at-risk individuals ages 16 to 24. Awards will be give to organizations that embody the YouthBuild model of balancing in school learning that leads to the achievement of a high school diploma or passing the General Education Development (GED) test, and construction skills training that prepares youth for career placement. YouthBuild grantees will tap the energies and talents of disadvantaged youth to increase the supply of permanent affordable housing for homeless individuals and low-income families.

Choice Neighborhood Planning and Implementation Grants: Deadline Dec 7th: The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced $65 million in competitive Choice Neighborhoods pilot grants for redevelopment of both public and other HUD-assisted housing properties. The program also widens the traditional pool of eligible applicants by allowing local governments, nonprofits and for-profit developers that submit joint applications with a public entity to apply. HUD anticipates funding 12-15 Planning Grants with a maximum award of $250,000 each and approximately 2-4 implementation grants at a maximum of $31 million each.

Capital Fund Education and Training Community Facilities Program: Deadline Jan 14: The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today that it is offering $35 million to public housing authorities to develop facilities that will provide early childhood and adult education, and/or job training programs for public housing residents. The maximum grant award for the Capitol Fund Education and Training Community Facilities Program (CFCF) is $5 million.

11/5/2010 Urban Affairs Weekly Newsletter

Sat, 06 Nov 2010 00:05:04 +0000

Top News

President Obama Reports Over 150,000 New Jobs in October, Pledges Faster Job Creation:Today from the Roosevelt Room, President Obama announced that the private sector added 159,000 new jobs in October, marking the tenth straight month of job growth. Today’s jobs report also showed that businesses added more than 100,000 jobs in both August and September as well. Since January, the private sector has added 1.1 million jobs. Despite the encouraging news, the President called the unemployment rate “unacceptably high” and outlined his own strategy of small business tax cuts and investments in America’s infrastructure and innovation.

EPA Recognizes Top Green Power Purchasers: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its list of the top 50 organizations using the most renewable electricity. Led by Intel, Kohl’s Department Stores, Whole Foods, and Starbucks, the Green Power Partnership’s top purchasers use more than 12 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually, equivalent to avoiding the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from the electricity use of more than 1 million average American homes. Green power is generated from renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, and low-impact hydropower.

New HHS Report Shows Affordable Care Act Savings of $3,500 for Medicare Recipients: Health and Human Services Secretary Sebelius announced a new report concluding that under the Affordable Care Act, average savings for those enrolled in traditional Medicare will amount to more than $3,500 over the next 10 years. Savings will be even higher – as much as $12,300 over the next 10 years – for seniors and people with disabilities who have high prescription drug costs. The analysis shows that the Affordable Care Act helps lower costs for those on Medicare significantly by closing the Part D gap known as the “donut hole” in prescription drug coverage.

HUD Unveils Three How-To Videos To Help Homebuyers: To help consumers navigate the process of buying a home, theThe Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) today unveiled three how-to videos. Each video focuses on a critical part of the home buying process including Shopping for your Home, Shopping for your Loan, and Closing the Deal.

DOE and EPA Release 2011 Annual Fuel Economy Guide: The Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency today released the 2011 Fuel Economy Guide, providing consumers with information about estimated mileage and fuel costs for model year 2011 vehicles. The 2011 Fuel Economy Guide can help consumers easily identify the most fuel efficient vehicles that meet their needs. Each vehicle listing in the guide provides an estimated annual fuel cost. The online version of the guide allows consumers to input their local gasoline prices and typical driving habits to receive a personalized fuel cost estimate.

Featured

Washington Post: NealPeirce Reports on a “More Responsive, Pro-Town, Pro-City, Pro-Region” Federal Government: In this upcoming Sunday’s Washington Post, Neal Peirce discusses the Partnership for Sustainable Communities. He highlights the new collaborative Federal approach and profiles some of the Partnership’s recent grant recipients; the “Regional Prosperity Initiative” in Northeast Ohio’s Cleveland-Akron region, the “Grand Boulevard Initiative” for San Francisco’s El Camino Real highway, a streetcar line to connect Atlanta, and a Colorado Main Streets Initiative to help three communities in rural areas. “A window to a more responsive, pro-town, pro-city, pro-region federal government, has been opened”, writes Peirce.

Stories from Sustainable Communities: Federal Partnership and Louisville Metro Bring Smart Growth Principles to Fern Creek: Citizens of Fern Creek, KY recently participated in a 3-day Sustainable Communities Design Workshop intended to inform the process of creating transportation, housing, walking and shopping choices while preserving the environment. The forum was hosted by the Federal Partnership for Sustainable Communities, a cooperative initiative of the Department’s of Housing and Urban Development, Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency as part of a technical assistance grant with Louisville Metro authority. The Partnership for Sustainable Communities is a core pillar in the Obama administration’s new approach to developing livable communities. Assistance is provided to educate residents and stakeholders on how to apply smart growth principles to their rapidly growing suburban community, which still has many scenic views of family farms.

Funding Opportunities

Community Health Centers New Access Points Program: Deadline Nov. 17 The Department of Health and Human Service’s Health Resources and Services Administration seeks applicants for up to $250 million in competitive 2-year grants to support development of New Access Points, new full-time service community health delivery sites that provide comprehensive primary and preventive health care services to improve health of, and decrease health disparities of, medically underserved and vulnerable populations. Organizations eligible to compete for the 350 awards include public or nonprofit private entities, including tribal, faith-based and community-based organizations.

HUD Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Grants: Deadline Nov. 18
The Department of Housing and Urban Development made $1.68 million available through the CoC Homeless Assistance Programs, a set of three competitively-awarded programs created to address the problems of homelessness in a comprehensive manner with other federal agencies. CoC programs aim to reduce the incidence of homelessness in Continuum of Care communities by assisting homeless individuals and families move to self-sufficiency and permanent housing. Eligible services include transitional housing, permanent supportive housing and other services to help homeless persons transition from homelessness to living independently, programs providing rental assistance for homeless individuals with disabilities; and programs offering Section 8 rental assistance for moderate rehabilitation of buildings with single-room dwellings, designed for individual use.

Treasury Grants for Community Development Financial Institutions: Deadline Nov. 19
The Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) today announced grants providing up to $135 million in Financial and Technical Assistance awards. The awards will support Community Development Financial Institutions providing affordable financing and related services to low-income communities and populations that lack access to credit, capital and financial services.

HUD Hope VI Grants: Deadline Nov. 22
The Department of Housing and Urban Development is seeking applicants for $124 million in grants to transform severely distressed public housing developments. Grant funds may be used for an array of activities, including: demolition of severely distressed public housing; acquisition of sites for off-site construction; capital costs of major rehabilitation, new construction and other physical improvements; and community and supportive service programs for residents, including those relocated as a result of revitalization efforts. It is anticipated that five to six grant awards will be made, with a maximum award of $22 million each.

Labor Competition for YouthBuild grants: Deadline Dec. 3
The Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration announced grants possible totaling $130 million for the YouthBuild program, an alternative education program that provides classroom instruction and construction skills training to at-risk individuals ages 16 to 24. Awards will be give to organizations that embody the YouthBuild model of balancing in school learning that leads to the achievement of a high school diploma or passing the General Education Development (GED) test, and construction skills training that prepares youth for career placement. YouthBuild grantees will tap the energies and talents of disadvantaged youth to increase the supply of permanent affordable housing for homeless individuals and low-income families.

Capital Fund Education and Training Community Facilities Program (CFCF): Deadline Jan 14 The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today that it is offering $35 million to public housing authorities to develop facilities that will provide early childhood and adult education, and/or job training programs for public housing residents. The maximum grant award is $5 million.

Urban Affairs Newsletter 10-29-2010

Derek Douglas — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 23:10:20 +0000

Top News

President Obama Highlights Treasury Report on Job Creation in Visit to Sheet Metal Factory:
Today, President Obama visited Stromberg Sheet Metal, a medium sized business employing 350 people in Beltsville, Maryland. The President discussed a new report issued today by the Department of the Treasury that details how his proposal to allow businesses and investors to deduct immediately the full cost of most investments will help businesses expand and hire. Under the President’s proposal, a business like Stromberg would be able to take advantage of this proposal to invest in new equipment this year or next year and deduct 100 percent of that investment immediately.

DOT Announces 54 High-Speed Rail Projects: Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced that 54 high-speed rail projects in 23 states will share $2.4 billion to continue developing America’s first nationwide program of high-speed intercity passenger rail service. The money is being awarded for construction of track and stations, purchase of new passenger equipment, and planning studies. The Department's Federal Railroad Administration received 132 applications from 32 states totaling $8.8 billion, more than three times the $2.4 billion available. “States understand that high-speed rail represents a unique opportunity to create jobs, revitalize our manufacturing base, spur economic development and provide people with an environmentally friendly transportation option,” said Secretary LaHood.

EPA & DOT Announces Historic Gas and Fuel Efficiency Standards: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation today announced the first national standards to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve fuel efficiency of heavy-duty trucks and buses. The engine and vehicle standards would start in 2014 and achieve a 10 to 20 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions and fuel consumption by 2018. The agencies estimate that the national program would provide $41 billion in net benefits over the lifetime of model year 2014 to 2018 vehicles.

HUD Releases Housing October Scorecard; Recovery Continues: The Department’s of Housing and Urban Development and the Treasury today released the October edition of the Obama Administration's Housing Scorecard; a comprehensive report on the nation’s housing market. The scorecard shows that the recovery in the housing market continues to remain fragile, but also highlights the positive impact of the Administration’s unprecedented recovery efforts. Since April of 2009, record low interest rates have helped more than 7.1 million homeowners to refinance, resulting in more stable home prices and $12.7 billion in total borrower savings. The Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) has allowed more than 3.52 million families to modify the terms of their mortgage.

HHS Announces Funds for Community Health Centers, Expanding Access to Care: Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced the availability of up to $335 million for existing community health centers across the country under the Affordable Care Act’s Expanded Services initiative. Of the $11 billion the Affordable Care Act provides for operation and expansion of health centers, $9.5 billion is targeted to creating new health center sites in medically underserved areas and expanding preventive and primary health care services at existing health center sites. This expansion of sites and services will help community health centers serve nearly double the number of patients they do today, regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay.

Funding Opportunities

Choice Neighborhood Planning and Implementation Grants: Deadline Oct. 26
The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced $65 million in competitive Choice Neighborhoods pilot grants for redevelopment of both public and other HUD-assisted housing properties. The program also widens the traditional pool of eligible applicants by allowing local governments, nonprofits and for-profit developers that submit joint applications with a public entity to apply. HUD anticipates funding 12-15 Planning Grants with a maximum award of $250,000 each and approximately 2-4 implementation grants at a maximum of $31 million each.

Community Health Centers New Access Points Program: Deadline Nov. 17 The Departmen of Health and Human Service’s Health Resources and Services Administration seeks applicants for up to $250 million in competitive 2-year grants to support development of New Access Points-- new full-time service community health delivery sites that provide comprehensive primary and preventive health care services to improve health of, and decrease health disparities of, medically underserved and vulnerable populations. Organizations eligible to compete for the 350 awards include public or nonprofit private entities, including tribal, faith-based and community-based organizations.

Capital Fund Education and Training Community Facilities Program (CFCF): Deadline Jan 14
The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today that it is offering $35 million to public housing authorities to develop facilities that will provide early childhood and adult education, and/or job training programs for public housing residents. The maximum grant award is $5 million.

10/22/2010 Urban Affairs Newsletter

Derek Douglas — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 21:49:50 +0000

Top News

President Obama Touts Report on the Importance of Women in the Economy: President Obama held a backyard discussion in Seattle, Washington on the importance of women in the economy. The meeting follows the release of a new report from the President’s National Economic Council finding, among other new trends, that an increasing number of women are the primary breadwinners for their families. The report highlights the distinct economic challenges facing women and details the President’s commitments to equal pay, workplace flexibility, and nearly doubling the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit for middle-class families.

Partnership for Sustainable Communities Awards Grants to Build Infrastructure Nationwide: Administration officials gathered at the National Press Club this week to highlight the $409.5 million in recent grants by the inter-agency Partnership for Sustainable Communities. The Partnership - which consists of the Departments of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - builds economic competitiveness by connecting housing with good jobs, transportation, and more. Last week, agencies began releasing local grants to support sustainable living nationwide. "We want to make sure that when we're building infrastructure, we're considering how housing, transportation, and the environment all impact each other,” President Obama said in a statement.

President Obama Calls on Congress to Keep the American Opportunity Tax Credit
President Obama hosted a group of students in the Oval Office whom all attend college with the help of the American Opportunity Tax Credit - a college tuition tax credit worth up to $2,500 a year. The President called on Congress to make the tax credit permanent so 12 million more students from working families will have a chance to earn a college degree. The American Opportunity Tax credit is part of the 90% increase in tax credits for education that families saw within the first year of the Obama Administration. “Cutting back on education would amount to unilateral disarmament,” said the President. “We can’t afford to do that. The nation that educates its children the best will be the nation that leads the global economy in the 21st century.”

Holder Announces $110 Million for Reentry Programs that Reduce Spending on Corrections:
Speaking at the European Offenders Employment Forum Attorney General Eric Holder announced $110 million in Fiscal Year (FY) 2010 funding for the Second Chance Act reentry grants and the Justice Reinvestment Initiative. These two efforts focus on reducing recidivism rates and state and local spending on corrections through the use of evidence-based, smart-on-crime approaches implemented by state, local, tribal and non-profit partners.

Secretary LaHood Announces More Than 70 Transportation Projects Funded Under TIGER II:
Forty-two capital construction projects and 33 planning projects in 40 states will share nearly $600 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s popular TIGER II program for major infrastructure projects ranging from highways and bridges to transit, rail and ports. Roughly 29 percent of TIGER II money will go to road projects, 26 percent for transit, 20 percent for rail projects, 16 percent for ports, four percent for bicycle and pedestrian projects and five percent for planning projects. Using merit-based evaluation criteria allows the Department of Transportation to address some of the nation’s most critical challenges like sustainability and economic competitiveness. “These are innovative, 21st century projects that will change the U.S. transportation landscape by strengthening the economy and creating jobs, reducing gridlock and providing safe, affordable and environmentally sustainable transportation choices,” said Secretary LaHood. HHS Announces New Affordable Care Act Grants for Consumer Protection

HHA Announces New Affordable Care Act Grants for Consumer Protection: Secretary Sebelius announced new Consumer Assistance Grants program awards of nearly $30 million to help 35 states enforce the Affordable Care Act’s consumer protections. Specifically, these grants will make fund state and non-profit efforts to increase access to reliable healthcare by educating consumers on their new rights, help file appeals, and track consumer complaints to help identify problems and strengthen enforcement. “These grants will help ensure consumers’ rights are protected, and they are another way the new law is putting patients, not insurance companies, in charge of their health care,” said Secretary Sebelius.

Secretary Duncan Announces $27 Million Ready-to-Learn Television Program Grants: Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced three awards totaling $27 million for projects to improve educational opportunities for young learners through innovative technology. Grants will be used to develop and deliver high-quality, age-appropriate, educational content to increase the early literacy and mathematics skills of young children age two through eight years old. The five-year grants were awarded to three public telecommunications entities that will offer services across the nation. “These grants will surround young children with a variety of innovative media to equip them with early literacy and numeracy skills to prepare them for success in school,” said Secretary Duncan.

Featured

National Economic Council: Women and the Economy
The National Economic Council released a report this week on Job’s and Economic Security for America’s Women. The report lays out the economic landscape facing women today and details some of the many ways the administration is committed to making sure the government is working for all Americans especially American women.

Funding Opportunities

Choice Neighborhood Planning and Implementation Grants: Deadline Oct. 26
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced $65 million in competitive Choice Neighborhoods pilot grants for redevelopment of both public and other HUD-assisted housing properties. The program also widens the traditional pool of eligible applicants by allowing local governments, nonprofits and for-profit developers that submit joint applications with a public entity to apply. HUD anticipates funding 12-15 Planning Grants with a maximum award of $250,000 each and approximately 2-4 implementation grants at a maximum of $31 million each.

Community Health Centers New Access Points Program: Deadline Nov. 17
The Health Resources and Services Administration seeks applicants for up to $250 million in competitive 2-year grants to support development of New Access Points-- new full-time service community health delivery sites that provide comprehensive primary and preventive health care services to improve health of, and decrease health disparities of, medically underserved and vulnerable populations. Organizations eligible to compete for the 350 awards include public or nonprofit private entities, including tribal, faith-based and community-based organizations.

HUD Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Grants: Deadline Nov. 18
HUD made $1.68 million available through the CoC Homeless Assistance Programs, a set of three competitively-awarded programs created to address the problems of homelessness in a comprehensive manner with other federal agencies. CoC programs aim to reduce the incidence of homelessness in Continuum of Care communities by assisting homeless individuals and families move to self-sufficiency and permanent housing. Eligible services include transitional housing, permanent supportive housing and other services to help homeless persons transition from homelessness to living independently, programs providing rental assistance for homeless individuals with disabilities; and programs offering Section 8 rental assistance for moderate rehabilitation of buildings with single-room dwellings, designed for individual use.

Treasury Grants for Community Development Financial Institutions: Deadline Nov. 19
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) today announced grants providing up to $135 million in Financial and Technical Assistance awards. The awards will support Community Development Financial Institutions providing affordable financing and related services to low-income communities and populations that lack access to credit, capital and financial services.

HUD Hope VI Grants: Deadline Nov. 22
The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development is seeking applicants for $124 million in grants to transform severely distressed public housing developments. Grant funds may be used for an array of activities, including: demolition of severely distressed public housing; acquisition of sites for off-site construction; capital costs of major rehabilitation, new construction and other physical improvements; and community and supportive service programs for residents, including those relocated as a result of revitalization efforts. It is anticipated that five to six grant awards will be made, with a maximum award of $22 million each.

Labor Competition for YouthBuild grants: Deadline Dec. 3
The U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration announced grants possible totaling $130 million for the YouthBuild program, an alternative education program that provides classroom instruction and construction skills training to at-risk individuals ages 16 to 24. Awards will be give to organizations that embody the YouthBuild model of balancing in school learning that leads to the achievement of a high school diploma or passing the General Education Development (GED) test, and construction skills training that prepares youth for career placement. YouthBuild grantees will tap the energies and talents of disadvantaged youth to increase the supply of permanent affordable housing for homeless individuals and low-income families.

NEW Capital Fund Education and Training Community Facilities Program (CFCF): Deadline Jan 14
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is offering $35 million to public housing authorities to develop facilities that will provide early childhood and adult education, and/or job training programs for public housing residents. The maximum grant award is $5 million.

Developing Long-Term Solutions to Some of the Country’s Most Significant Housing Challenges

Secretary Shaun Donovan — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 19:03:20 +0000

Yesterday, I had the privilege to participate in an event that demonstrated the Obama Administration’s commitment to developing long-term solutions to some of the country’s most significant housing challenges. While the Administration has been focused on developing effective responses to our most pressing crises, this has not diverted our attention from resolving persistent and long-standing housing problems. Over the course of the day, we heard from a variety of experts and voices from outside the Administration regarding the future of the nation’s housing policy during The Next Generation Housing Policy: Convening on Rental Housing.

Co-hosted by the White House Domestic Policy Council, the National Economic Council, the Council of Economic Advisors, the MacArthur Foundation as well as HUD, the Department’s of Treasury, and Agriculture, yesterday’s convening represents a tremendous opportunity for us to begin envisioning the future of our nation’s rental housing policy.

Obviously, problem mortgages and foreclosures played a central role in our nation’s recent economic collapse. But far less attention is given to some of the nation’s more deeply-rooted housing challenges such as the affordability of rental housing for low-income Americans and the persistence of concentrated poverty in many of our neighborhoods. These challenges require some of our best minds, which is why bringing together leading practitioners, academics, and advocates from the housing and community development field at yesterday’s conference is so important.

The events keynote speakers were Melody Barnes, Director of White House Domestic Policy Council, and Larry Summers, Director of the National Economic Council. After an introductory panel, featuring two of the country’s leading rental housing scholars, the day’s conversations were organized around three broad questions surrounding the future of federal housing policy:

How can the Next Generation Housing policy more effectively combat poverty, address social inequity issues, and create new incentives for wealth building?
What policies would further neighborhood revitalization, sustainability and fair housing goals?
How can policy better finance the new construction, preservation, and sustainability of rental housing?

Partnering in the event is the MacArthur Foundation, which has provided essential support of research on rental market dynamics and made significant efforts to preserve and improve existing affordable rental housing; they have helped put rental housing back on the policy map.

Certainly, we’ve worked to answer these questions at HUD. Since being sworn in as HUD Secretary, I have been committed to pursuing a more balanced federal housing policy that supports renters as well as owners, across the economic spectrum. While the crisis remains a painful reminder of the need to attain this balance, yesterday’s conference provided an opportunity to seriously consider the policy mechanisms which can allow us to achieve that balance. These are not problems that will be solved in a day, a week or a month. But they can be solved.

Of course, a balanced housing policy is about more than just supporting rental and ownership – it’s also about how we address the needs of communities, from those recently been hit by the foreclosure crisis to those places that have been losing population and suffering from disinvestment for decades. A balanced housing policy should serve the full spectrum of communities and provide the tools to unlock the potential of our communities and our economy by creating a true geography of opportunity for all our children – one that ensures their futures—and their choices—are no longer limited by something as arbitrary as the zip code they grow up in.

That is what yesterday’s conference was about. And it’s why I was proud to be a part of it.

Shaun Donovan is the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

10/8/2010 Urban Affairs Weekly Newsletter

Derek Douglas — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 00:15:35 +0000

Top News

One Week Later, Nearly 2,000 Small Businesses Approved for SBA Loans Due to Jobs Act: Late Tuesday, just a week after President Obama signed the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, nearly 2,000 small business owners who had been waiting for SBA-backed loans were approved and will soon have those loan funds – totaling nearly $1 billion – in hand. The Jobs bill provides a second round of funding for the successful Recovery Act initiative that took $680 million in taxpayer dollars and turned it into nearly $30 billion in lending support to about 70,000 small businesses.

President Obama Announces Skills for America’s Future: This Monday, at a meeting, of the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board (PERAB), President Obama announced the launch of Skills for America’s Future, a new, industry-led initiative to dramatically improve industry partnerships with community colleges and build a nation-wide network to maximize workforce development strategies, job training programs, and job placement. Leading companies such as PG&E, Gap Inc., McDonald’s, United Technologies and Accenture have already committed to the initiative and support the President’s goal of 5 million additional community college degrees and certificates awarded by 2020. “We want to make it easier to connect students looking for jobs with businesses looking to hire”, said the President. “We want to help community colleges and employers create programs that match curricula in the classroom with the needs of the boardroom”.

Federal Agencies Host National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention: The U.S. Departments of Justice and Education lead the official launch of an Administration wide National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention. Participating cities have pledged to develop or enhance comprehensive and innovative plans to prevent youth and gang violence. On Monday and Tuesday, teams from the cities of Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Memphis, Salinas, and San Jose met to share information and experience about what works in preventing youth and gang violence. These plans will aim to reduce violence, improve opportunities for youth, and encourage innovation at the local and federal levels.

U.S. Department of Education Awards $38.8 Million in Safe and Supportive School Grants: The U.S. Department of Education has awarded $38.8 million in Safe and Supportive School (S3) grants to 11 states to measure school safety at the building level and to help intervene in those schools with the greatest safety needs. Managed by the Department’s Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, the grant recipients will share findings in collaboration with local educational agencies to improve the learning environment within schools facing the biggest challenges.

HHS Grants Resources to Forty-eight States to Build competitive Health Insurance Marketplaces: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today awarded nearly $49 million to help 48 states and the District of Columbia plan for the establishment of health insurance exchanges. A key part of the Affordable Care Act, starting in 2014, are the health insurance exchanges – new, competitive, consumer-centered private health insurance marketplaces that will allow individuals and small businesses to have the same purchasing power as big employers. These grants of up to $1 million each will give states the resources to determine how their exchanges can best fit their needs.

HUD Announces $905.3 Million in Financing to rebuild Hospitals Across the Nation: The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced commitments to back the mortgage loans for nine construction and renovation projects through the Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) Section 242 Hospital Mortgage Insurance Program. The primary purpose of the loans is to increase access to quality care by offsetting the cost of construction and major equipment needed to operate facilities. By insuring the mortgage loan, FHA is enabling the hospitals to obtain lower cost financing that will save an estimated $370.7 million in interest expense over the life of the loan.

Secretary Locke Announces Recovery Act Investments To Expand Broadband Internet Access : Today U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke announced 14 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act investments in a program to increase broadband Internet access and adoption, enhancing the quality of life for Americans and laying the groundwork for sustainable economic growth. These investments, totaling $206.8 million in grants, will help bridge the technological divide, create jobs, and improve education and public safety in communities across the country.

Featured

USDA: Report showcases the importance of urban forests: A new report by the USDA Forest Service, Sustaining America’s Urban Trees and Forests, provides an overview of the current status and benefits of America’s urban forests that affect the lives of nearly 80 percent of the U.S. population. The distribution of urban forests varies from community to community, but most share the same benefits provided by city trees: improved water quality, reduced energy use, diverse wildlife habitats and increased quality of life and well-being for residents.

Funding Opportunities

EDA Space Coast Regional Innovation Cluster Competition: Deadline Oct. 15
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration has funding available for projects that advance innovation, boost competitiveness, and create jobs. Grants will be given to innovations in commercialization, regional innovation clusters, global export promotion, and green technology.

Choice Neighborhood Planning and Implementation Grants: Deadline Oct. 26
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced $65 million in competitive Choice Neighborhoods pilot grants for the redevelopment of both public and other HUD-assisted housing properties. The program widens the traditional pool of eligible applicants by allowing local governments, nonprofits and for-profit developers that submit joint applications with a public entity to apply. HUD anticipates funding 12-15 Planning Grants with a maximum award of $250,000 each and approximately 2-4 implementation grants at a maximum of $31 million each.

Community Health Centers New Access Points Program: Deadline Nov. 17
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration seeks applicants for up to $250 million in competitive 2-year grants to support development of New Access Points, new community health delivery sites that will provide comprehensive primary and preventive health care services with the goal of improving the health of, and decreasing the health disparities that exist within, medically underserved and vulnerable populations. Organizations eligible to compete for the 350 awards include public or nonprofit private entities, including tribal, faith-based and community-based organizations.

HUD Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Grants: Deadline Nov. 18
The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development made $1.68 million available through the Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Programs, a set of three competitively-awarded programs created to address the problems of homelessness in a comprehensive manner with other federal agencies. CoC programs aim to reduce the incidence of homelessness in Continuum of Care communities by assisting homeless individuals and families move to self-sufficiency and permanent housing. Eligible services include transitional housing, permanent supportive housing and other services to help homeless persons transition from homelessness to living independently, programs providing rental assistance for homeless individuals with disabilities; and programs offering Section 8 rental assistance for moderate rehabilitation of buildings with single-room dwellings, designed for individual use.

NEW Treasury Grants for Community Development Financial Institutions: Deadline Nov. 19
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) today announced grants providing up to $135 million in Financial and Technical Assistance awards. The awards will support Community Development Financial Institutions which provide affordable financing and related services to low-income communities and populations that lack access to credit, capital and financial services.

NEW Labor Competition for YouthBuild grants: Deadline Dec. 3
The U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration announced grants possibly totaling $130 million for the YouthBuild program, an alternative education program that provides classroom instruction and construction skills training to at-risk individuals ages 16 to 24. Awards will be given to organizations that embody the YouthBuild model of balancing in-school learning that ultimately leads to the achievement of a high school diploma or passing the General Education Development (GED) test and construction skills training that prepares youth for career placement. YouthBuild grantees will tap the energies and talents of disadvantaged youth to increase the supply of permanent affordable housing for homeless individuals and low-income families.

What You Missed: Open for Questions on the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative

Alaina Beverly — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 21:28:35 +0000

Yesterday, the White House Office of Urban Affairs hosted a live chat on the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative to support the transformation of distressed neighborhoods into neighborhoods of opportunity. Larkin Tackett, Department of Education; Luke Tate, Department of Housing and Urban Development; Thomas Abt, Department of Justice; and Richard Frank, Department of Health and Human Services; joined Derek Douglas, White House Domestic Policy Council, to discuss one of the Obama Administration’s signature place-based initiatives to support and revitalize distressed communities.

Here are a few highlights from the discussion:

“We truly believe we need a great school at the center of every great neighborhood,” said Larkin Tackett, Director of Promise Neighborhoods, Department of Education.

“This collaboration is very important. . . public safety is a critical component of neighborhood revitalization. . .without it, kids can’t learn, residents can’t feel safe in their own neighborhoods, and resident health is threatened by drugs and violence,” said Thomas Abt, Chief of Staff, Office of Justice Programs, DOJ.

“Community resources are critical to how people live their lives,” said Richard Frank, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, HHS.

“Choice Neighborhoods broadens our focus...beyond the walls of the development itself to the entire neighborhood,” said Luke Tate, Special Assistant to the Secretary, HUD.

Watch the video of the chat and use the links below to skip directly to questions (questions are paraphrased):

To view this content, please download the Adobe Flash Player

Download Video: mp4 (543MB) | mp3 (52MB)

What other programs, beyond the Promise Neighborhoods Program, are part of White House’s Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative? What metrics are you using to assess success of the Initiative
What lessons can be learned by previous failed attempts at "urban renewal" & to what extent can Promise Neighborhoods repair damage & avoid pitfalls?
How will this new initiative translate housing dollars into neighborhood-wide outcomes?
Beyond funding matches and leverage, what is the role of philanthropy in this Neighborhood Revitalization strategy?
How is the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative not throwing dollars at the problem?
How does the Harlem Children’s Zone model which is based on a long-term connection with a neighborhood, apply to communities that need to see short term results. How will this initiative balance short-term and long-term programs and goals?
How do we build capacity at the local and regional level to combat the social challenges that the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative attempts to address?
How can small amounts of grant money, or a seed grant of $500,000 leading to fundamental change in the fabric of American society spur fundamental change?
If a Promise Neighborhood applicant does not meet the eligibility requirements for the Promise Neighborhood planning grant, will the next stage of funding be re-opened for additional applicants?
When you revitalize communities what impact does that have on the existing residents in those communities. How does the Neighborhood Revitalization initiative plan to balance the inevitable rise in rents and property values with the financial means of existing residents?
How are the White House Office of Urban Affairs, the Domestic Policy Council, and the Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships participating in the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative?
How do NRI programs ensure that resources go to the community?
Will the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative engage subject-matter experts that can contribute to successful outcomes?
What is the priority structure for cities that have some of the most challenging metrics, and zip codes that suffer from severe economic distress?

Alaina Beverly is Associate Director of the White House Office of Urban Affairs

Open for Questions: Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 20:00:43 +0000

Tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. EDT, the White House Office of Urban Affairs is hosting a live chat on the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative to support the transformation of distressed neighborhoods into neighborhoods of opportunity.

Last week, the Department of Education announced a total of $10 million in awards to Promise Neighborhoods, a cornerstone of the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative. Tomorrow, join representatives from across agencies for a dialogue on the Promise Neighborhoods Program and the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative.

Join the conversation with Larkin Tackett, Department of Education; Luke Tate, Department of Housing and Urban Development; Thomas Abt, Department of Justice; and Richard Frank, Department of Health and Human Services; moderated by Derek Douglas, White House Domestic Policy Council.

Submit your questions in advance over at Next American City by 10:00 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, September 28
Watch and discuss the live chat on WhiteHouse.gov and Facebook on Tuesday, September 28 at 3:00 p.m. EDT

Learn more about the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative:

9/24/2010 Urban Affairs Weekly Newsletter

Alaina Beverly — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 14:38:22 +0000

Top News

Six Month Anniversary of Affordable Care, Patient’s Bill of Rights Goes Into Effect: Marking the six month anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, President Obama outlined some of the new patient protections that went into effect across the country this week at a backyard townhall in Fairfax, VA. The new regulations, referred to as the Patient’s Bill of Rights, prohibit insurance companies from discriminating against children with pre-existing conditions, from placing a “lifetime” dollar limit on most benefits, and from restricting emergency room care. The Patient’s Bill of Rights also provides the right to appeal coverage decisions, enables children to stay on a parent’s insurance until age 26, and ensures that patients can receive preventative care, such as mammogram screenings, at no additional cost. To learn more about your rights under the Affordable Care Act, visit www.WhiteHouse.gov/HealthReform. “So all these things are designed not to have government more involved in health care,” President Obama explained. “They’re designed to make sure that you have basic protections in your interactions with your insurance company; that you’re getting what you pay for; that you have some basic measures of protection in interacting with the health care system.”

Small Business Jobs Bill Passes Through Congress: The President’s Small Business Jobs Bill won final passage through Congress this week. The bill will offer relief to small businesses currently under economic strain by providing temporary tax relief measures, permanent raises on loan limits, a $30 billion fund to encourage lending by community banks, as well as a $1.5 billion fund to shore up small-business loan programs at the state level. “The small business jobs bill passed today will help provide loans and cut taxes for millions of small business owners without adding a dime to our nation’s deficit,” said the President. “After months of partisan obstruction and needless delay, I’m grateful that Democrats and a few Republicans came together to support this common-sense plan to put Americans back to work.”

Promise Neighborhood Awards, Investing in Children and Creating Paths Out of Poverty: U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan awarded 21 Promise Neighborhood planning grants this week to non-profit organizations and institutions of higher education. The Promise Neighborhood Program is based upon the Harlem Children’s Zone model of engaging an entire community in the educational success of a child. The 1-year grants of up to $500,000 each will enable recipients to plan for a cradle-to-career suite of services that will improve educational achievement and healthy development of children. "I applaud each of the Promise Neighborhood applicants for their leadership," President Barack Obama said. "They are galvanizing their communities to help offer our children a pathway out of poverty. The winners announced today will deliver a broad array of services to help all young people thrive academically, earn their high school diploma, go on to college, and reach for their dreams."

HHS Regulations to Raise Quality of Head Start Programs: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposed new regulations this week which would require low performing Head Start programs to compete against each other for funding. The proposed rules would require Head Start grantees to compete for their grants if they fall short of quality benchmarks in classroom instruction, health and safety, financial accountability and integrity. The stricter regulations would also be accompanied by enhanced training and technical assistance initiatives to help Head Start grantees meet the new standards. “Head Start has a critical mission - to help vulnerable children achieve their full potential,” HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said. “It is a top priority for the Obama Administration to ensure that the program fulfills that mission by holding programs accountable for classroom quality and high standards of program integrity.”

EDA Invests $532,000 in DC’s Homeland Security Industry Cluster: The U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced $532,000 in grants that will support regional planning for the St. Elizabeth’s homeland security economic cluster based in southeast Washington, D.C. Over 60 Department of Homeland Security offices will be consolidated at St. Elizabeth’s, a former federal hospital facility seated on a 150 acre campus in Washington, DC’s Ward 8. The EDA funding will be used to develop a regional economic plan focused on leveraging regional assets, creating thousands of jobs, and increasing GDP for the greater DC, Virginia and Maryland region. The St. Elizabeth’s cluster strategy is a White House Urban Policy interagency initiative supported by the Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration, the U.S. Small Business Administration, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and working in concert with municipal, regional and federal leadership to harness the unique opportunities that this homeland security cluster affords for the surrounding community and the regional economy.

Commerce Awards $12 Million to Support Innovative Technology: U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Gary Locke announced the winners of the i6 Challenge, a new $12 million innovation competition led by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA), in partnership with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF). The i6 Challenge aims to support the nation’s best ideas for technology commercialization and entrepreneurship in six regions of the country. The winning team from each region will receive $1 million to drive innovative technologies in the medical and bioscience industries to market more quickly by bringing together experts in science and academia with leaders is the public and private sector. “Each of the winners exemplifies the entrepreneurial spirit that drives innovation and will help move America forward by increasing our competitiveness around the world.” Locke said. “The i6 Challenge represents a key component of President Obama’s innovation strategy - to move great ideas from the lab to the marketplace to create jobs and economic growth.”

Featured

Transforming Distressed Neighborhoods into Neighborhoods of Opportunity: President Obama’s Domestic Policy Adviser and the Director of the Domestic Policy Council Melody Barnes penned a blog this week applauding the Department of Education’s Promise Neighborhood program and placing this innovative approach to educational attainment in the context of the Administration’s comprehensive Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative (NRI). The NRI is a White House-driven interagency partnership among the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the U.S. Department of Treasury. “We’re making sure our agencies are working together because we know that neighborhood revitalization can’t happen in silos.” Barnes writes. “We’re taking the broad and integrated approach we know is needed to leverage our resources and increase economic growth and resident well-being in our communities.”

The Cluster Moment: Getting Real About the Economy: In a piece featured in The New Republic, Mark Muro and Bruce Katz of the Brookings Institute Metropolitan Policy Program discuss the phenomenon of regional industry or innovation clusters – geographic concentrations of interconnected firms and industries. The authors share their perspectives on why cluster policies are “back in the mix this fall.”

Funding Opportunities

EDA Space Coast Regional Innovation Cluster Competition, Deadline October 15: The U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration has funding available for projects that advance innovation, boost competitiveness, and create jobs. Grants will be given to innovations in commercialization, regional innovation clusters, global export promotion, and green technology.

Choice Neighborhood Planning and Implementation Grants, Deadline October 26: The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced $65 million in competitive Choice Neighborhoods pilot grants for redevelopment of both public and other HUD-assisted housing properties. The program also widens the traditional pool of eligible applicants by allowing local governments, nonprofits and for-profit developers that submit joint applications with a public entity to apply. HUD anticipates funding 12-15 Planning Grants with a maximum award of $250,000 each and approximately 2-4 implementation grants at a maximum of $31 million each.

NEW Community Health Centers New Access Points Program, Deadline November 17: The Health Resources and Services Administration seeks applicants for up to $250 million in competitive 2-year grants to support development of New Access Points-- new full-time service community health delivery sites that provide comprehensive primary and preventive health care services to improve health of, and decrease health disparities of, medically underserved and vulnerable populations. Organizations eligible to compete for the 350 awards include public or nonprofit private entities, including tribal, faith-based and community-based organizations.

NEW HUD Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Grants, Deadline November 18: HUD made $1.68 million available through the CoC Homeless Assistance Programs, a set of three competitively-awarded programs created to address the problems of homelessness in a comprehensive manner with other federal agencies. CoC programs aim to reduce the incidence of homelessness in Continuum of Care communities by assisting homeless individuals and families move to self-sufficiency and permanent housing. Eligible services include transitional housing, permanent supportive housing and other services to help homeless persons transition from homelessness to living independently, programs providing rental assistance for homeless individuals with disabilities; and programs offering Section 8 rental assistance for moderate rehabilitation of buildings with single-room dwellings, designed for individual use.

HUD Hope VI Grants, Deadline November 22: The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development is seeking applicants for $124 million in grants to transform severely distressed public housing developments. Grant funds may be used for an array of activities, including: demolition of severely distressed public housing; acquisition of sites for off-site construction; capital costs of major rehabilitation, new construction and other physical improvements; and community and supportive service programs for residents, including those relocated as a result of revitalization efforts. It is anticipated that five to six grant awards will be made, with a maximum award of $22 million each.

Upcoming Events

Sept. 27th — Special Assistant to the President for Urban Policy Derek Douglas will deliver remarks at the American Planning Association National Design Professional Summit in Washington, DC.

Sept. 28th—Live Webchat. Join Larkin Tackett, Deputy Director of Promise Neighborhoods, U.S. Department of Education, Luke Tate, Special Assistant to the Secretary, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Thomas Abt, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, and Richard Frank, Deputy Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for a conversation on the Promise Neighborhoods Program and other federal resources that form the bedrock of the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative. Special Assistant to the President for Urban Policy Derek Douglas will moderate the discussion which will be streamed live on www.whitehouse.gov from 3-4PM.

Sept. 29th —Bessy Kong of the White House Domestic Policy Council will deliver remarks at the Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development in Washington, DC.

8/20/10 Urban Affairs Weekly Newsletter

Alaina Beverly — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 20:22:11 +0000

Top News

President Obama Touts American Innovation, Manufacturing in Wisconsin: On a trip to Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, this week, the President visited the ZBB Energy Corporation, where advanced zinc bromide flow batteries and intelligent control platforms, are manufactured. The batteries and platforms are crucial components of a smart energy grid and expanding the commercialization of electric vehicles and allow users to cut costs by shifting energy use to off-peak hours and bank intermittent sources of energy like the sun and wind for future use. ZBB Energy Corporation is using $1.3 million in Recovery Act State Energy Program loans to fund a $4.5 million factory renovation to triple their capacity to manufacture flow batteries and power systems, which has allowed them to retain and hire new workers.

The President Calls on Congress to Put Small Business Assistance to a Vote: After visiting small businesses and talk with small business owners around the country this week, President Obama delivered remarks calling on the partisan minority in Congress to stop blocking legislation that would make loans more available and cut taxes for small businesses. “I have been adamant about this because small businesses are the backbone of our economy. They create two out of every three new jobs in this country. And while a lot of big businesses and big banks have started recovering from this recession, small businesses and community banks that loan to small businesses have been lagging behind. They need help. And if we want this economy to create more jobs more quickly, we need to help them.”

Vice President Biden Announces Broadband Projects to Expand Economic Opportunity: Vice President Biden, this week, announced $1.8 billion for Recovery Act investments in broadband projects that will create jobs and expand economic opportunities in 37 states. These investments in high-speed Internet infrastructure will help bridge the technological divide in communities left in the 20th century economy and support improvements in education, healthcare, and public safety. “The awards are another great example of how the Recovery Act is creating jobs upfront, while also building a foundation for sustainable job creation and global competitiveness,” the Vice President said.

Over 8,000 Affordable Homes Become Energy Efficient With Recovery Act Retrofit Awards: U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan announced that 100 affordable housing developments around the country, including 8,112 homes, have been awarded more than $100 million to complete energy efficient renovations with Recovery Act funds. These renovations will not only make necessary upgrades to thousands of affordable apartments, but will also create jobs and save money for residents. The awards are part of HUD’s Green Retrofit Program for Multifamily Housing, created for the first time through the Recovery Act. The program provides $250 million nationally to reduce energy costs, cut water consumption, and improve indoor air quality. The 100 awards announced this week will create an average energy savings of $33,000 per property, or $3.3 million annually.

DOT Sees Overwhelming Response of States Seeking High-Speed Rail Funding: U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced this week that the Federal Railroad Administration has received 77 applications from 25 states for the most recent round of High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail grant funding. The funding will support high-speed rail corridor development programs and smaller, individual projects within rail corridors that are ready to begin construction. “The response to our call to transform America’s transportation landscape has been tremendous and shows the country is ready for high-speed rail,” Secretary LaHood said. “We have received strong bi-partisan support for President Obama’s bold initiative that will enhance regional mobility, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, ease highway and airport congestion and reduce our carbon footprint.”

Secretary Locke Announces $31.3 Million for Restoration and Recovery in Louisiana Gulf: During his third visit to the Gulf Coast since June, U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, this week, announced $31.3 million in coastal restoration and economic development grants for Louisiana and the Gulf Coast. The grants will fund the restoration of a critical barrier headland that protects vital bay and wetland habitats and the deployment of 21 Assessment and Evaluation teams to communities affected by the BP oil spill in the Gulf. Speaking on the funding Secretary Lock said, “These grants are another sign of this administration’s commitment to help the Gulf Coast’s economy and environment recover in the wake of the BP oil spill.”

Treasury Announces $104.8 Million to Expand Access to Capital in Underserved Areas: This week, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund announced $104.8 million in awards for 179 local financial institutions serving struggling communities in 44 states and the District of Columbia. These grants will help financial institutions support local entrepreneurs and small businesses and spur local economic growth and recovery by expanding access to capital and affordable financial services in underserved areas. The grants represent the largest single round of awards in the CDFI Fund’s history. “CDFIs play a critical role financing small businesses and providing access to capital where it is needed most,” said Treasurer of the United States Rosie Rios. “The awards we are announcing today will provide critical support to local financial institutions, which are on the front lines creating jobs and economic opportunity in communities across the country.”

Featured

Urban Update, Regional Innovation Clusters: Barry Johnson, Senior Advisor and Director of Strategic Initiatives at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Agency, writes on the efforts of the White House Regional Innovation Cluster Working Group. The group works to develop collaborative federal funding streams in an effort to make coordinated, flexible, and regionally-customized investments in places to obtaining maximum return on a region’s unique economic assets and competitive strengths.

Foreign Policy, Beyond City Limits: In an article in Foreign Policy, Parrag Khanna writes on the new urbanized era and the increasing power of cities around the world. Khanna writes, “…cities are the real magnets of economies, the innovators of politics, and, increasingly, the drivers of diplomacy. Those that aren't capitals act like they are…This new world of cities won't obey the same rules as the old compact of nations; they will write their own opportunistic codes of conduct, animated by the need for efficiency, connectivity, and security above all else.”

Funding Opportunities

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Choice Neighborhood Pre-Notice: The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development posted the Choice Neighborhood FY 2010 Notice of Funding Availability Pre-Notice to give potential applicants guidance prior to the actual Choice Neighborhoods funding notice that will be published this summer. The guidance offers advance details regarding the application process to compete for funds through this pilot program.

Tiger II Discretionary Grants Program, Deadline August 23: The Department of Transportation is soliciting applications for the "TIGER II" discretionary grant program, a $600 million competitive transportation grant program for surface transportation projects.

Sustainable Communities Grants, Deadline August 23: The U.S. Departments of Transportation and Housing and Urban Development have joined together to award up to $75 million in funding–$35 million in TIGER II Planning Grants and $40 million in Sustainable Community Challenge Grants–for localized planning activities that ultimately lead to projects that integrate transportation, housing, and economic development.

HUD Sustainable Regional Planning Grant, Deadline August 23: The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development is seeking applicants for their $100 million Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant program. The program is designed to create stronger, more sustainable communities by connecting housing to jobs, fostering local innovation, and building a clean energy economy. The grant is part of the DOT, HUD, EPA partnership.

EDA Innovation in Economic Development Competition, Deadline August 27: The Economic Development Administration announced funding for projects that advance innovation, boost competitiveness, and create jobs. Grants will be given to innovations in commercialization, regional innovation clusters, global export promotion, and green technology.

Upcoming Events

August 25th —Alaina Beverly, Associate Director of the Office of Urban Affairs, will participate in a meeting on Global Sustainable Urban Development Wednesday in Washington, D.C.

Urban Update: Regional Innovation Clusters

Barry Johnson — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 19:35:54 +0000

Today you’ll find few who will deny that we live in a time defined by economic challenges. Though the Obama Administration has made strides in the last year to spur recovery and build a new foundation for America’s long term prosperity, too many families are still faced with the reality of unemployment or underemployment despite exhaustive job searches. It is clear that the difficulties faced today by citizens across the country require that we find innovative solutions, take new approaches, and seize on economic opportunities that have previously been overlooked.

Inter and intra-regional competition – where one area recruits a business or industry from another area—only leads to a zero sum gain over time. Robust regional economies that are innovating and high performing enhance our ability to compete in the global economy, while improving job opportunities and quality of life for communities.

The Obama Administration is looking for ways to support the unique competitive advantages of regions across the country in order to drive forward industry and get America moving again. The White House’s Regional Innovation Clusters Working Group brings together seven different agencies—including the Economic Development Agency at the Department of Commerce, the Small Business Administration, and the Departments of Education, Energy, and Labor— to do just that.

The Regional Innovation Clusters Working Group is developing collaborative federal funding streams in an effort to make coordinated, flexible, and regionally-customized investments in places thereby obtaining maximum return on a region’s unique economic assets and competitive strengths. We see economic cluster strategy as part of the bedrock of the new foundation for American prosperity.

Regional Innovation Clusters are geographic concentrations of firms and industries that do business with each other and have common needs for talent, technology, and infrastructure. Clusters make full use of a region’s unique assets, from infrastructure to workforce to available capital, to increase collaboration and create a climate for businesses to grow and thrive. Innovation clusters build on existing industry and resources, foster creative environments that encourage knowledge sharing and tailored training and educational activities, and anchor jobs to an area rather than shipping jobs overseas.

We know that this cluster strategy works. From well known places like Silicon Valley and the Research Triangle in North Carolina to lesser known places like Dayton’s Tech Town, Tuscon’s Arizona Bioscience Park, and the Middle Georgia Economic Alliance, clusters are helping to connect disenfranchised communities to career and educational opportunities, secure higher paying jobs in regions, and stabilize regions.

The White House Regional Innovation Cluster Working Group issued a joint notice of funding availability early this year, providing up to $129.7 million over five years to create an Energy Regional Innovation Cluster (E-RIC). The E-RIC will be an energy efficiency cluster that will focus on developing new technologies to improve the design of energy-efficient building systems. The award will be announced in the fall, but it is only the beginning.

We will soon see more collaborative federal approaches to foster local and regional partnerships around economic development and innovation in areas like health, agriculture, defense and more. The Administration is laying a new foundation for economic prosperity based upon regional strengths that will enhance our nation's global economic competitiveness and create sustainable, 21st century jobs for long term growth.

Barry Johnson is the Senior Advisor and Director of Strategic Initiatives at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Agency

8/13/10 Urban Affairs Weekly Newsletter

Alaina Beverly — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 21:24:14 +0000

Top News

The President Speaks on Higher Education, Lifting Graduation Rates in Austin, TX: President Obama traveled this week to the University of Texas at Austin to speak on his commitment to improving the American education system and raising graduation rates. Over the course of a generation, the United States fell from first to 12th place in college graduation rates for young adults. In his speech the President touched on initiatives like Race to the Top and eased access to Pell Grants that help make college more attainable for every American. “If we’re serious about making sure America’s workers, and America itself, succeeds in the 21st century, the single most important step we can take…is to make sure that every one of our young people…has the best education that the world has to offer.”

President Obama Signs the Manufacturing Enhancement Act: The President, this week, signed the Manufacturing Enhancement Act, which will help American companies grow and hire in the manufacturing sector. The act reduces or suspends tariffs that American companies pay on materials for products they manufacture, thereby lowering costs for American businesses and prices for American consumers. Speaking at the bill signing, President Obama said “I’m more determined than ever to do every single thing we can to hasten our economic recovery and get our people back to work. So that’s why I’m pleased today to sign into law a bill that will strengthen American manufacturing and American jobs.” The manufacturing sector lost 3,864,000 between 2000 and 2008 but has gained 183,000 jobs already this year.

Administration Announces Additional Foreclosure Support for Unemployed Homeowners: The Obama Administration, this week, announced two targeted foreclosure-prevention programs to help homeowners struggling to make their mortgage payments due to unemployment. The U.S. Department of the Treasury will make $2 billion of additional assistance available through the Housing Finance Agency Innovation Fund for the Hardest Hit Housing Markets. Additionally, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development plans to launch a complementary $1 billion Emergency Homeowners Loan Program to provide assistance to homeowners at risk of foreclosure due to involuntary unemployment, underemployment, or a medical condition.

Secretary Duncan Applauds Congress for Supporting 160,000 Education Jobs Nationwide: This week the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to provide $10 billion to support an estimated 160,000 education jobs nationwide. The $10 billion fund will support education jobs in the 2010-11 school year. Speaking on the bill passing, U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan said, “with the support of the jobs bill, these educators will be helping our children learn instead of looking for work. This is the right thing to do for our children, for our teachers, and for our economy."

EPA Announces $200,000 in Environmental Justice Grants for Affected Gulf Communities: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is accepting proposals for projects that will support the protection of human health and the environment in communities affected by the BP oil spill. The grant program will provide funding to help develop educational materials on what seafood is safe to eat, what to do if exposed to oil, and how to address and adapt to the spill’s long-term effects. The funding, which will go directly to local organizations, will help to ensure that information is distributed through trusted networks of communication and from organizations that will continue to support efforts to rebuild in the wake of disaster.

Commerce Secretary Gary Locke Announces $1.6 Billion in 2010 Census Savings: U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke announced this week that the Commerce Department’s U.S. Census Bureau is returning $1.6 billion in 2010 Census operational savings. In a time of tightened federal resources, the Census came in 22 percent under budget primarily because funding set aside for disasters or major operational failures was not tapped and because both the Census questionnaire mail-back response rate and workforce productivity across field operations beat expectations. “Over the last 17 months, we have worked tirelessly to ensure American tax dollars were being spent wisely…With proficient management, the cooperation of the American public and a little bit of luck, the Census stayed on track with significant cost savings to taxpayers,” Secretary Locke said.

HHS Announces Availability of $250 Million in Health Center New Access Point Grants: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced $250 million in grants for New Access Points, sites that will improve delivery of primary health care services to underserved and vulnerable populations. The grant program, funded by the Affordable Care Act, will open new full-time sites that provide comprehensive primary and preventive health care services and will help decrease health disparities for medically underserved populations. “These funds reflect the Administration’s steadfast commitment to improving and expanding access to vital primary health care services,” Secretary Sebelius said. “From our cities to our smallest towns, each health center has an important role to play, ensuring access to services in its community.”

Featured

Forbes Magazine, Obama's Goal for Higher Education: Secretary of Education Arne Duncan wrote this week in Forbes Magazine on the Administration’s focus on improving education and the role of innovation in reaching that goal. “In the era of the knowledge economy, innovation and institutional accountability are the twin paths forward to revitalizing American competitiveness. Colleges and universities should be developing and expanding evidence-based practices to increase access to college, accelerate learning and support success in the workplace and life, even if doing so means moving past traditional methods of scheduling, structuring classes and 20th century academic programs in need of modernization,” Secretary Duncan writes.

Funding Opportunities

Upcoming Events

August 17th —President Obama will travel to Seattle, WA Tuesday where he will talk about strengthening the economy and creating jobs for the families and businesses of Washington State.

8/6/10 Urban Affairs Weekly Newsletter

Alaina Beverly — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 20:56:39 +0000

Top News

The President Touts American Made Products, Bolstering American Economy at AFL-CIO: Speaking at the ALF-CIO Executive Council Meeting this week in Washington DC, President Obama discussed the progress that has been made in employment, with millions finding jobs thanks to the Recovery Act, and the length left to go with millions still out of work. The President told attendees, “we are going to rebuild this economy stronger than before, and at the heart of it are going to be three powerful words: Made in America.” In his speech he pledged to enforce American trade laws, to fight for tax breaks for companies that invest in the United States, and to continue rebuilding America’s infrastructure for the 21st century.

President Obama Signs the Fair Sentencing Act: This week, President Obama signed into law the Fair Sentencing Act, which reduces the disparity between the amounts of powder cocaine and crack cocaine required for the imposition of mandatory minimum sentences and eliminates the mandatory minimum sentence for simple possession of crack cocaine. The law also increases monetary penalties for major drug traffickers. Speaking on the bill signing, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said, “the signing of today’s bill into law represents the hard work of Democrats and Republicans…coming together and making progress on something that people had identified as a glaring blight on the law.”

First Lady Applauds Senate for Passing Child Nutrition Legislation: Following the Senate’s passing of the Child Nutrition bill Thursday, First Lady Michelle Obama issued a statement applauding the efforts of both parties to improve the future of American children. The bill, which provides an additional $4.5 billion over ten years to federal child nutrition programs including school lunches, passed with widespread support from both Democrats and Republicans. The bill also marks the first time in 30 years that the federal government has increased funding for such nutrition programs. “While childhood obesity cannot be solved overnight, with everyone working together, there’s no question that it can be solved -- and today’s vote moves us one step closer to reaching that goal,” the First Lady said.

July Jobs Numbers Show Continued Private Sector Growth: Christina Romer writes on the newly released jobs numbers for the month of July, which show that private sector employment across the country grew by 71,000 jobs in July, the seventh consecutive monthly increase. Growth varied across industries, employment in manufacturing as well as education and health services increased, while that in financial services and construction decreased. Employment in state and local government, including public school teachers, decreased by 48,000 jobs, underscoring the importance of the additional state fiscal relief working its way through Congress. Overall, the pace of growth was not enough to reduce the overall unemployment rate, which remained 9.5 percent.

Administration Report: 74% of Oil in BP Oil Spill has been Contained or Mitigated: A report released this week by a panel of government scientists indicates that the vast majority of the oil from the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill has either evaporated or been burned, skimmed, recovered from the wellhead, or dispersed and is in the process of being degraded. The findings reflect the federal government’s aggressive response to the spill.

Department of Energy Awards $188 Million for Small Business Technology Commercialization: U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced $188 million in awards to more than 200 small businesses to develop prototype or pilot operations for innovative technologies. The awards, from Energy’s Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business Tech Transfer office, will help these small businesses develop clean energy technologies that have the potential to be commercialized, ultimately spurring new jobs in their communities. "Small businesses are a major engine of innovation and job creation in our economy," Secretary Chu said. "Bringing these innovative technologies to market will help spur economic growth and reduce the country's energy use."

DOT Secretary LaHood Announces $9.7 Million for Innovative Approaches to Congestion: Seven states will share $9.7 million to develop strategies to minimize traffic congestion as part of the Federal Highway Administration's Value Pricing Pilot Program U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced. The program promotes “value pricing,” a strategic way to incentivize and manage traffic flow by applying varying price levels at different times of the day or in response to traffic volume. The grant will fund innovative strategies like pay-as-you go insurance plans and parking pricing plans in California, Florida, North Carolina, Minnesota, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

Featured

Urban Update--Neighborhood Revitalization: Members of the Neighborhood Revitalization Working Group penned a piece this week detailing their work, which aims to integrate housing, education, justice, and health programs with the goal of transforming neighborhoods of concentrated poverty into neighborhoods of opportunity. The group—a collaboration between the Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Education, Justice, Health and Human Services, and Treasury—is coordinating key programs like Choice Neighborhoods and Promise Neighborhoods to create more comprehensive support for failing communities.

New York Times--Welcome to the Recovery: U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner writes on the Nation’s economic recovery and evidence that the country is on a path back to growth. Recent data, like last quarter’s growth in GDP, shows that large parts of the private sector continue to strengthen. “By taking aggressive action to fix the financial system, reduce growth in health care costs and improve education, we have put the American economy on a firmer foundation for future growth,” Secretary Geithner writes.

Funding Opportunities

Upcoming Events

August 9th—President Obama will travel to Austin, TX on Monday for an education rally at the University of Texas at Austin campus.

August 12th—Alaina Beverly, Associate Director of the Office of Urban Affairs, will speak on “The Urban Agenda--Domestic and International Opportunities” at a meeting of the Business Civic Leadership Council in Seattle.

Urban Update: Neighborhood Revitalization

Thomas Abt, Larkin Tackett and Luke Tate — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 20:37:10 +0000

Ed Note: This is part of a series of blogs that detail the work of developing a national urban policy agenda.

In July 2007, then-Candidate Obama said “if poverty is a disease that infects an entire community in the form of unemployment and violence; failing schools and broken homes, then we can’t just treat those symptoms in isolation. We have to heal that entire community. And we have to focus on what actually works.”

For too long, structural inequalities compacted by federal, state, and local policies have isolated fragile neighborhoods from sources of capital and economic growth, leading to long-term, localized recessions that pre-date the current economic downturn.

In these neighborhoods, high unemployment rates, rampant crime, health disparities, high prevalence of substance abuse and mental health disorders, struggling schools and other ineffective institutions work in tandem to intensify the negative outcomes of growing up in poverty. Conditions that would be challenging in isolation become overwhelming when interwoven throughout our most distressed neighborhoods.

To solve these interconnected problems, neighborhoods need interconnected solutions. And given the national scale of the problem, and the significant resources the Federal government already directs to distressed communities – albeit too often in inconsistent and uncoordinated manners – Federal leadership in neighborhood revitalization is necessary.

This is the charge of the Neighborhood Revitalization Working Group, led by the Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Education (ED), Justice (DOJ), Health and Human Services (HHS), and Treasury. This group is integrating housing, education, justice and health programs with the overarching goal of transforming neighborhoods of concentrated poverty into neighborhoods of opportunity – neighborhoods that provide the opportunities, resources, and environment for children, youth, and adults to maximize their life outcomes.

But that doesn’t mean we have all the answers. Our strategy reflects an awareness of the limits of Federal programs; indeed, the difficult process of solving interconnected problems in distressed neighborhoods has always happened at the local level, with dedicated, inventive leaders and practitioners adapting their tactics to changing conditions, rewriting rigorous community plans to target their efforts, and diligently managing those plans to achieve their vision. The Working Group is pursuing a new approach to Federal engagement with neighborhoods of concentrated poverty that is more interdisciplinary, coordinated, place-based, data- and results-driven, and flexible.

This new approach is reflected in our effort to coordinate several key programs:

(1) Choice Neighborhoods, a HUD program to transform distressed public and assisted housing into sustainable mixed-income housing that is physically and financially viable over the long-term;
(2) Promise Neighborhoods, an ED program that creates a comprehensive continuum of academic programs and family and community supports, with great schools at the center, that will significantly improve the educational and developmental outcomes of children in the nation’s most distressed communities;
(3) Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation, a DOJ program with a community-based strategy that aims to control and prevent violent crime, drug abuse and gang activity in designated high crime neighborhoods across the country;
(4) Community Health Centers, an HHS program that has for more than four decades provided comprehensive high-quality preventive and primary health care to America’s most medically underserved communities.

While federal programs alone cannot address the challenges faced in neighborhoods of concentrated poverty, our hope is that the comprehensive integration of Neighborhood Revitalization programs at the Federal level will ultimately reflect the collaborative planning necessary at the local level.

Failing to address economic distress at the neighborhood level not only limits our pool of human capital and diminishes regional and national economic capacity, it also compounds harms to low-income families in ways that exacerbate disparities in our society. To tap the full potential of these neighborhoods and their residents, revitalization efforts must connect neighborhoods to surrounding communities, local institutions, and regional economies in ways that make both local and regional economic growth and prosperity sustainable and equitable over the long term.

Thomas Abt is Chief of Staff to the Office of Justice Programs at Justice
Larkin Tackett is Deputy Director of Promise Neighborhoods at the Department of Education
Luke Tate is Special Assistant to the Secretary at the Department of Housing and Urban Development

7/30/10 Urban Affairs Weekly Newsletter

Alaina Beverly — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 00:53:01 +0000

Top News

The President Discusses Education, Challenging the Status Quo at National Urban League: President Obama discussed his education agenda and Race to the Top initiative this week at the National Urban League Centennial Conference in Washington, D.C. The President stated that education reform is a top priority for his Administration because the “status quo is morally inexcusable, it’s economically indefensible, and all of us are going to have to roll up our sleeves to change it.”

In Detroit, President Obama Promises to Fight for American Workers: Friday, President Obama journeyed to Michigan to meet with workers and tour facilities of Chrysler and General Motors automobile plants. Speaking to workers at the Chrysler Jefferson North Assembly Plant, the President had a message for critics of the auto industry bailout: “Don't bet against the American worker. Don't bet against the American people. We got more work to do. It’s going to take some time to get back to where we need to be, but I have confidence in the American worker.” The President’s visit comes after the White House released a report earlier this week cataloguing signs of recovery for the auto industry. The report shows that in the year since GM and Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy, employment in the auto industry has increased by 55,000 jobs, marking the fastest year-over-year growth in auto employment since 1999.

President Obama Talks Small Business Support with Business Owners in New Jersey: The President met with small business owners in Edison, New Jersey to discuss the economy and urge Congress to pass support for small businesses. Following the meeting, the President delivered remarks on cooperation between political parties and legislation that supports small businesses currently in front of Congress and the Senate. “Small businesses are the backbone of our economy. They are central to our identity as a nation. They are going to lead this recovery. The folks standing beside me are going to lead this recovery,” he said.

Administration Celebrates the 20th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act: Monday the White House and Administration Officials marked the 20th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, a landmark law that broadly defends the rights of those with disabilities. As part of the celebration President Obama signed an Executive Order that will make the government a model employer for people with disabilities. Meanwhile the Department of Justice issued new rules that will increase accessibility for people with disabilities to businesses, recreational facilities, and websites. “Equal access. Equal opportunity. The freedom to make our lives what we will. These aren’t principles that belong to any one group or any one political party. They are common principles… These are the principles we cherish as citizens of the United States of America.”

Administration Launches Home Affordability Campaign to Inform Homeowners: The Advertising Council, in partnership with the U.S. Departments of Treasury and Housing and Urban Development, launched a campaign this week that encourages homeowners struggling with their monthly mortgage payments to learn about the Administration’s Making Home Affordable Program. The program aims to stabilize the housing market and help struggling homeowners get relief and avoid foreclosure by providing them with the opportunity to modify their mortgages to make them more affordable. The new advertising campaign will direct homeowners to free resources made available by the Federal Government that helps them understand their options to avoid foreclosure. Over 1.5 million homeowners have already received assistance from the program.

Deputy Transportation Secretary Speaks on Jobs, Recovery at Ohio State Fair: This week, U.S. Department of Transportation Deputy Secretary John Porcari spoke on American job growth and the Recovery Act at the opening of the Ohio State Fair. Speaking just a few miles from the site where President Obama and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood broke ground on the Recovery Act's 10,000th road project, Porcari discussed Recovery investments in Ohio which add up to more than $1.1 billion for 470 road, bridge, transit and airport projects that will move people and goods across the state more safely and efficiently These and other Recovery Act investments have saved or created over 117,000 jobs in Ohio, a story true in other states across the country.

Featured

Urban Policy Director Speaks on Administration’s New Foundation: Speaking to the National Urban League this week, Derek Douglas, Special Assistant to the President for Urban Policy, discussed how President Obama’s efforts to build a new economic foundation for all Americans will also shape what Black America will look like by 2025. “The President appreciated early on that to build a brighter future for America the foundation had to be strengthened. No longer could we have a society where economic security, access to quality health care, a solid education, and the right to live the American Dream are limited to a chosen few.”

ICMA Report: Adapting Smart Growth Strategies to Rural Communities: The International City/County Management Association recently released a report that examines the challenges facing rural communities and focuses on smart growth strategies that can help guide new growth in rural areas. The report acknowledges the effects of declining rural populations and loss of working lands and proposes support for the rural landscape, existing built assets and investments, and the development of new, vibrant and sustainable area.

Funding Opportunities

Upcoming Events

August 5th
President Obama will visit a Ford auto manufacturing plant in Chicago, IL.