BUSH ADMINISTRATION ALLOCATES $3 BILLION TO MEET PROJECTED SHORTFALL IN LOUISIANA'S ROAD HOME PROGRAM
Additional funding to help compensate state's homeowners

WASHINGTON - Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson today allocated an additional $3 billion to meet a projected shortfall in Louisiana's Road Home Program (www.road2la.org/). Appropriated by Congress, the funds will help reassure thousands of Louisiana homeowners that they will be compensated for their losses following the devastation of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Last month, President Bush signed an emergency spending bill to supplement the $10.4 billion already allocated to Louisiana through HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program, bringing the state's CDBG total to $13.4 billion. CDBG disaster funding is supporting the long-term recovery efforts throughout the Gulf by funding State plans to compensate homeowners, stimulate the production of affordable rental housing and restore vital infrastructure. The Louisiana rebuilding plan, known as the Road Home, was both designed and administered by the State but was in danger of running out of funds. This $3 billion, in addition to the $1 billion in other federal funds that the state must commit to plug its shortfall, is expected to allow the program to serve all applicants.

�Louisiana homeowners can rest easier knowing that there will be enough money in the Road Home Program to compensate them for their losses,� said Jackson. �As always, HUD will continue to work with state leaders to help thousands of residents who want to rebuild their homes and their lives in the wake of this natural disaster.�

Many homeowners who applied for assistance feared that the state's homeowner compensation program was without enough money to satisfy their eligible claims. Jackson's announcement today, however, will provide sufficient funding into Louisiana's homeowner program to cover these costs and restore faith in the state program.

HUD anticipates that the State of Louisiana will submit an application quickly with HUD approval expected shortly thereafter. The funding allocated today will satisfy eligible claims that homeowners filed on or before Louisiana's application deadline of July 31, 2007.

###