HUD ANNOUNCES $26 MILLION IN FUNDING TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT THROUGHOUT ALABAMA
CDBG funding to support a variety of local housing and development programs

BIRMINGHAM, AL - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced the State of Alabama will receive more than $26 million to promote a variety of community development and affordable housing programs throughout. HUD's General Counsel Rob Couch joined Senator Jeff Sessions at the federal courthouse in Birmingham.

The funding announced today provides the State of Alabama a critical source of federal funding to help smaller communities and rural areas in the State that do not receive direct block grant assistance from HUD. Local leaders in smaller, less populated areas of Alabama will apply to Alabama's Department of Economic and Community Affairs.

"This funding will help breathe new life into neighborhoods across this great State," said Couch. "By helping communities to improve their infrastructure or assisting families to purchase their first home, HUD is helping improve neighborhoods in Alabama from the ground up."

Sessions said, "I am pleased to accept these funds on behalf of the state of Alabama and the many mayors, county commissioners, and local leaders in Alabama who are working hard each day to improve their local communities. As I meet with elected officials throughout the year, one of the things I hear most often is the important role that CDBG funds play in local community development efforts. CDBG is especially important to many of Alabama's smaller towns and rural areas. This $26 million block grant is a significant investment in the future of our communities, making possible important local projects that promote future economic growth."

Since 1974, HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program has received approximately $120 billion for 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 the grants, although CDBG is also an important catalyst for job growth and business opportunities. Last year, communities reported that CDBG provided housing assistance to 179,385 households, assisted in the creation or retention of more than 55,000 jobs. CDBG funds are distributed to grantees according to a statutory formula based on a community's population, poverty, and age of its housing stock, and extent of overcrowded housing.

The primary objective of the CDBG program is to develop viable communities by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment and by expanding economic opportunities, principally for persons of low- and moderate-income. Alabama can also target this funding toward preventing or eliminating slums or blight. Under unique circumstances, States may also use their funds to meet urgent community development needs.

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HUD is the nation's housing agency committed to increasing homeownership, particularly among minorities; creating affordable housing opportunities for low-income Americans; and supporting the homeless, elderly, people with disabilities and people living with AIDS. The Department also promotes economic and community development as well as enforces the nation's fair housing laws. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet and espanol.hud.gov.