Senate Confirms Next Deputy Secretary of HUD
On Tuesday, December 2nd, the Senate confirmed the nomination of Nani Coloretti to be the Deputy Secretary of HUD. The recorded vote was 68 to 28.
As the Deputy Secretary, Ms. Coloretti will be the second most senior official at HUD and will be responsible for the management of the Department’s day-to-day operations. Prior to joining HUD, Coloretti served as an Assistant Secretary at the Department of the Treasury where she advised the Secretary on the development and execution of the Department’s budget and strategic plans. She also served as a policy advisor and budget director in San Francisco where she led the development and implementation of the city’s $6.2 billion annual budget.
In a press release, HUD Secretary Julian Castro said “Her [Coloretti] breadth of experience and track record at the Treasury Department make her the ideal choice for a mission-oriented agency like HUD.”
House Passes Tax Extenders Legislation
On Wednesday, December 3rd the House passed H.R. 5771, the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014 by a recorded vote of 378 to 46. This bill would extend certain provisions of the U.S. Tax Code which expired at the end of 2013, although these extensions are temporary and only apply till the end of 2014.
Included in H.R. 5771 is an extension of the 9 percent minimum credit rate for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC). However, this bill does not include the establishment of the 4 percent minimum credit rate, which Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) included in his extender bill, the EXPIRE Act (S.2260). The EXPIRE Act was previously the leading “tax extenders” bill, but it failed to reach the Senate floor for votes. Legislation to extend the expired provisions of the tax code remained dormant until earlier this week when House and Senate negotiators met to agree upon a tax bill that would have made permanent some expiring tax provisions while extending the rest for two years. Yet President Obama threatened to veto the proposal because he believed it favored tax breaks for corporations over those for working families.
The Senate is now expected to approve H.R. 5771 before Congress adjourns for the year. The President has indicated he will sign the bill.
To read more about H.R. 5771, please click here
Legislation Seeks to Alter Income Reviews for Low-Income Tenants
This Monday, December 1st Representative Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) introduced a bill that would alter income verification requirements for low-income individuals and families with fixed incomes living in HUD’s federally assisted housing. Entitled the Tenant Income Verification Relief Act of 2014 (H.R. 5776), Perlmutter’s bill would allow tenants on a fixed income to have their income certified and/or verified once every three years rather than annually. The Congressman has stated that this legislation will help streamline and reduce the burdens placed on tenants for purposes of determining their eligibility and it will “help lighten the regulatory requirements placed on housing authorities and their tenants while still ensuring accountability”
In the past, NAHMA has supported similar proposals that would reduce the burden of income certifications for property owners, tenants and housing authorities. For example, NAHMA supported provisions in the unpassed Affordable Housing and Self-Sufficiency Improvement Act (AHSSIA) of 2012 which would have similarly reduced income certification to once every three years. Most recently, NAHMA explored reducing or eliminating income-driven interim recertifications as part of our Alternative Futures Working Group policy proposals. This policy proposal examined the cost savings provided by eliminating interims for mid-year increases in income or for income increases at various thresholds. You can read the report and budget scoring here.
NAHMA will review this legislation in consultation with our Federal Affairs Committee.
To read a press release from Representative Perlmutter on this bill, please click here