On Thursday May 26, 2016 the DC Department of Housing and Community Development’s Housing Resource Center, held a hearing to hear testimony of the National Housing Trust Fund Allocation Plan.
The National Housing Trust Fund was enacted in 2008. In 2016, HUD will disperse its first NHTF resources to state allocating agencies, including the District’s Department of Housing and Community Development. The NHTF is 100% targeted to extremely low income households; it is primarily a rental housing tool but states could choose to use of to 10% of their NHTF funds for certain homeownership activities; and, NHTF resources can be used for rental housing production, preservation, and operation.
Right now, each state NHTF allocating agency is developing its NHTF Allocation Plan, which it must submit to HUD for approval before states receive their 2016 NHTF funds. DC is expected to get $3 million in 2016 from the NHTF. The NHTF is administered nationally through HUD’s Office of Community Planning and Development.
The purpose of the May 26th hearing on the NHTF was to receive input on DCHD’s Allocation Plan for the National Housing Trust Fund. DHCD’s Allocation Plan will be submitted to HUD as a piece of DHCD’s Consolidated Plan, which DHCD held a series of hearings, etc on last year and is currently developing separately. Here is a link to the DC FY 2011-2015 Five Year Consolidated Plan (see priority housing needs beginning on p. 86). The Consolidated Plan (ConPlan) that DCHD submits to HUD this year will be for FY2016-2020. The ConPlan is a document that lays out a vision for how DHCD intends to spend certain federal resources (HOME, CDBG, HOPWA, and now the NHTF).
DC’s NHTF Allocation Plan will have 14 elements, either required by statute or HUD regulations. One of these 14 elements is the priority for funding. The priority for funding is required, by statute, to be based on six factors. These are the specific items DHCD is requesting public input on for its May hearing. These six are: priority housing needs, project-based rental assistance, eligibility requirements for sub-grantees, geographic targeting, funds leveraging, and the duration of the affordability period.
LeadingAge DC submitted comments to DHCD. To read these comments click here