HUD ANNOUNCES $6.5 MILLION FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN VIRGINIA FOR REMAINDER OF FY2011

RICHMOND - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan has announced that four Virginia regions will receive more than $6.5 million to support community development and produce more affordable housing. The individual funds given to grantees, including Blacksburg, Danville, Lynchburg and Newport News, can be found in the chart at the end of this release.

The FY2011 Continuing Resolution significantly reduced overall funding for the CDBG and HOME programs compared to last year. The nation's CDBG funding was reduced by more than $600 million, or approximately 16.5 percent, while the HOME program funding was reduced by more than $200 million, or approximately 11.7 percent.

"This year's block grant funding requires tough choices that we would not have made in better circumstances," Donovan said. "As we work under the challenges of our nation's deficit, we must also understand that these programs are absolutely essential in promoting community development, producing affordable housing, helping our homeless and even supporting long-term disaster recovery."

The funding announced today includes:

• $ 3,768,077 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds; and
• $ 2,743,257 in HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) funding.
  $6,511,334 TOTAL

"We know how important these funds are to cities and counties across Virginia," said Regional Administrator Jane C. W. Vincent. "HUD is committed to working with communities to provide technical assistance and enhance the consolidated planning process so that the $ 6.5 million in funding will be used more strategically to best meet local needs."

Since 1974, HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program has provided approximately $132 billion to state and local governments to target their own community development priorities. The rehabilitation of affordable housing and the improvement of public facilities have traditionally been the largest uses of CDBG although the
program is also an important catalyst for job growth and business opportunities. Annual CDBG funds are distributed to communities according to a statutory formula based on a community's population, poverty, and age of its housing stock, and extent of overcrowded housing.

HOME (HOME Investment Partnerships Program) is the largest federal block grant to state and local governments designed exclusively to produce affordable housing for low-income families. Since 1992, more than 600 communities have completed nearly 950,000 affordable housing units, including 403,000 for new homebuyers. In addition, 224,000 tenants have received direct rental assistance.

HUD is instituting several important program priorities in the upcoming year. First, the Department's consolidated planning process will be enhanced. Largely unchanged since the mid-1990s, the 'Con Plan' will be simplified by integrating HUD's technology systems and eliminating the need to prepare a separate annual performance report. Second, HUD's Office of Community Planning and Development is moving rapidly to implement its unified OneCPD technical assistance process which is particularly important as many local governments continue to struggle with budgetary pressures resulting from the economic downturn. Finally, HUD is again urging grantees to consider the needs of returning veterans and their families in the design and administration of these formula programs.

A table showing individual funds granted to Virginia:

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HUD's mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes: utilize housing asa platform for improving quality of life; build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination; and  transform the way HUD does business. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet at www.hud.gov and espanol.hud.gov.  You can also follow HUD on twitter @HUDnews, on facebook at www.facebook.com/HUD, or sign up for news alerts on HUD's News Listserv.

VA is the federal government's second-largest cabinet office. Secretary Shinseki has outlined three key priorities for the department: increase Veteran access to VA services and benefits, eliminate the disability claims backlog, and end Veteran homelessness. VA provides health care to more than 6 million people each year, in 91 million outpatient visits and 960,000 hospitalizations. VA provides more than $58 billion annually in disability pay and pensions to 4.5 million Americans, $10 billion in educational assistance, $1 billion for home loans and $2.6 billion for life insurance. More information about VA is available at www.va.gov.