Once every twelve years (or so) the Sunset Advisory Commission examines most state agencies. The Commission “questions the need for each agency, looks for potential duplication of other public services or programs, and considers new and innovative changes to improve each agency’s operations and activities.” The last time the Texas Department of Housing and Community [...]
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Tag Archives: TDHCA
TCAP: Let the Spending Begin
February 25, 2010
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February 18 was HUD’s deadline for 75% commitment of funds in the Tax Credit Assistance Program (TCAP). TDHCA hit that benchmark, with HUD reporting a 78.53% commitment rate for Texas. The next major deadline is a year from now, when 75% of the funds must be spent by developers. The HUD report indicates that as [...]
Read moreSlow start to weatherization programs: Not just Texas
February 23, 2010
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On Tuesday the Department of Energy’s Office of Inspector General added to the recent parade of commentary regarding the slow start of the Weatherization Assistance Program, pointing out that as of December, nationally only about 5% of the total housing units scheduled to be eventually weatherized had been completed. As previously commented on Texas Housers, [...]
Read moreWeatherization–a slow start for Texas may not be all bad news
December 22, 2009
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The Dallas Morning News ran a story Sunday (here) regarding Texas’s slow start to the Weatherization Assistance Program. The story highlighted the fact that as of last month, the program had completed just a handful homes using Recovery Act funds. Austin’s KUT picked up the story this morning (here). Is this good news? No, we’d [...]
Read moreDepartment of Energy IG: Recovery Act “has strained existing resources” at the Department
December 11, 2009
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The Inspector General at the Department of Energy[1] released a report Monday warning that the Recovery Act energy funding “represents a massive workload increase for the Department’s programs” and noting that “the effort to date has strained existing resources” at the department. The Department of Energy is administering $32.7 Billion of the Recovery Act, including [...]
Read moreTDHCA: Trying to make the best of a bad LIHTC thing
November 11, 2009
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One of the Recovery Act programs we’re watching is the Housing Tax Credit Exchange program, a program supporting the production of affordable multifamily housing. This program builds on the infrastructure and processes of the traditional Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. In the LIHTC program, investors receive tax credits for funding the construction of [...]
Read moreRecovery Act Reporting Milestone
November 6, 2009
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Last Friday was a major milestone in the extensive reporting requirements of the Recovery Act. Recovery.gov released the first round of reports by local recipients regarding the status of some 142,825 initiatives receiving recovery funds. This round of reports covered Feb. 17, 2009, through Sept. 30, 2009—the reports will be updated quarterly going forward. [...]
Read moreOverview of the Tax Credit Exchange Program in Texas
September 6, 2009
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Federal Program Highlights: Funding: 3 Billion Administering Agency: US Treasury Unused funds must be returned by 1/1/2011 Texas Program Highlights: Funding: Up to 314 Million Administering Agency: TDHCA Awards expected by 10/16/2009 The 2009 Stimulus Bill (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) contained a provision allowing the limited exchange of tax credits granted under [...]
Read moreOverview of the Tax Credit Assistance Program (TCAP) in Texas
September 6, 2009
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Here is a brief overview of the Texas Credit Assistance Program and how it is shaping up in Texas. Federal Program Highlights: Funding: 2.25 Billion Administering Agency: HUD Fund must be spent by 2/17/2012 Texas Program Highlights: Funding: 148 Million Administering Agency: TDHCA Awards expected by 12/17/2009 The 2009 Stimulus Bill (American Recovery and Reinvestment [...]
Read moreIt worked! TDHCA Tax Credit Exchange Program gets apps for 883 ELI apartments
September 6, 2009
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The 2009 Stimulus Bill (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) contained a provision allowing the limited exchange of tax credits granted under the Low- Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program for cash grants. In Texas, the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) recently adopted a policy providing incentives for developments to increase [...]
Read moreAdvocates offer recommendations to improve the Texas Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program
August 7, 2009
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The Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program is the program that produces, by far, the largest number of affordable housing units in Texas each year. The tax credits are awarded to housing developers by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) through a competitive process. The rules for that process are set out [...]
Read moreHooray! Today was a historic day of progress in Texas affordable housing
July 30, 2009
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The Board of Directors of the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs approved today a plan to use the Tax Credit Exchange Program (TCEP) to provide financial incentives to low income housing tax credit (LIHTC) developers to provide 10 percent to 20 percent more apartments in their new developments for Texans with incomes at [...]
Read more$55,000 was the price for community support for affordable housing in Dallas
July 29, 2009
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A document introduced into evidence today in the Dallas public corruption trial surrounding the Texas Low Income Housing Tax Credit program indicates that the going price for community support required to win approval of a tax credit development application was $55,000. At least that’s the price that was set out an unsigned 2004 agreement between [...]
Read moreA culture of greed tarnishes the Texas Low Income Housing Tax Credit program
July 16, 2009
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The Low Income Housing Tax Credit program in Texas is sometimes more about the developers making money building housing and less about the needs of people who need housing. Evidence of this fact can be found in the ongoing public corruption trial of housing tax credit developers and elected officials in the Dallas federal district court. [...]
Read moreLet’s take care to avoid developer windfalls in the new LIHTC program
July 12, 2009
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I haven’t discussed it much yet, but there’s a lot to be said about the new Low Income Housing Tax Credit Exchange Program (TCEP) recently authorized by the federal government. One of the things that needs to be said immediately is that as the state begins to structure how it is going to operate the [...]
Read moreGovernor Perry’s failure to appoint a consumer board member proves costly
June 26, 2009
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The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) could not meet to conduct business yesterday because it could not get a quorum of board members. As a result the agency is compelled to schedule an “emergency” board meeting for next Monday at Dallas Love Field. All of this could have been avoided had Governor [...]
Read moreKatrina Cottage pilot program woes due to failure at all levels
June 15, 2009
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How many times do we have to hear the story before it sinks in? Let’s sum up the government response to the plight of impoverished hurricane survivors… The federal government is slow and bungling. The state government is slow and would rather spend money on economic development rather than helping poor disaster victims get back [...]
Read moreRoundup of housing related bill action affecting TDHCA by the Texas Legislature
June 14, 2009
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I am finally getting around to compiling the list of all the bills that passed and those that did not in the recent session of the Texas Legislature. In today’s post are the bills that affected TDHCA. First is a list of those that passed, followed by those that were filed but did not pass. [...]
Read moreThe struggle begins to successfully design a TX Neighborhood Stabilization Program
March 5, 2009
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I have previously expressed concerns about how the new Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) can be successfully implemented. I attended a public hearing last Friday in which officials of the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) explained their proposed rules for how the program would be carried out. The NSP program is an attempt [...]
Read moreCan Texas handle the increase in homeless and low-income weatherization funds?
March 3, 2009
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All of the money coming to Texas from the economic stimulus bill is a great thing. But as the size of the program begins to sink in there is reason to be concerned over the State’s ability to spend so much money so fast. Two of the programs that are causing the most concern by [...]
Read moreTexas legislature focuses on unmet rural housing needs
February 21, 2009
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It is no secret that rural housing needs have received far less attention than urban housing needs in Texas. A host of new legislation being filed in the Texas Legislature this session seeks to change that. As I discussed several weeks ago here, the Texas Low Income Housing Information Service, the Association of Rural Communities [...]
Read moreA failed housing program will always come back and bite the responsible entity
February 20, 2009
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One had to feel sorry for Michael Gerber Thursday morning. Appearing before a subcommittee of the Texas House Appropriations Committee he was forced to listen as as the Legislators were presented a state auditor’s report excoriating the failure of the state’s initial efforts to provide housing assistance to victims of Hurricane Rita. House members were [...]
Read moreTexas will be forced to ration hurricane home repair grants
January 7, 2009
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Texas should allocate the limited disaster funds so that they take care of the housing needs of Hurricane Ike/Dolly survivors as the State’s top priority and relegate funding for government programs to a lower priority. Families’ recovery should come first and government second. If even after making housing the State’s top funding priority, not enough [...]
Read moreMy suggestions for a Texas disaster housing program
December 14, 2008
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In developing a plan to help Texas survivors of Hurricanes Ike and Dolly rebuild their homes I believe the starting point should be the existing Hurricane Rita housing program operated by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA). For the reasons I detailed in earlier blog entries, I strongly feel that the basic [...]
Read moreLawsuit alleging race discrimination in Texas housing tax credit program clears hurdle
December 13, 2008
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The Federal District Court for the Northern District of Texas has denied a motion by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) to throw out a lawsuit alleging the Department is guilty of racial discrimination in the operation of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program. The case will now move forward to [...]
Read moreExisting statewide housing program should be the vehicle for assisting Hurricane Ike survivors
December 11, 2008
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The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) has received criticism from elected officials over the slow pace of the Department’s program to repair and rebuild homes damaged by Hurricane Rita. As an advocate for low income families’ housing needs I have been following and commenting on TDHCA’s efforts to set up and operate [...]
Read moreCloser scrutiny will follow Texas expenditure of $1.3 billion in hurricane relief
November 29, 2008
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HUD has allocated Texas $1.3 billion of the $2.1 billion in Community Development Block Grant funds that Congress has recently appropriated for disaster recovery. Major allocations also went to Louisiana for Hurricane Edwardo recovery ($438m) and Iowa for flood recovery ($125m). Texas officials had submitted to the feds estimates of about $27 billion for Ike-related [...]
Read morePresident Bush considers pardoning former Texas housing agency board member
November 21, 2008
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ProPublica, an independent, non-profit newsroom that produces investigative journalism in the public interest, is reporting that President Bush is considering a pardon for former Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) board member Florida Bell Griffin. Griffin was convicted and sent to federal prison in a bribery scandal surrounding the Texas Low Income Housing [...]
Read moreSeeking solutions to providing low-income housing in rural Texas
November 17, 2008
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Hereford, a Texas Panhandle community of about 15,000, will host an important meeting today to consider how to overcome the barriers to getting affordable housing developed in small towns and rural communities across Texas. While population growth rates in rural communities are often slower than those in urban communities housing needs in these communities are [...]
Read moreRough outlines of Texas $178m Neighborhood Stabilization Program emerge
November 11, 2008
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In an attempt to deal with the foreclosure crisis Congress has allocated substantial funding to cities, counties and states to buy up for close to an abandoned properties to prevent them from further depressing property values and causing neighborhoods to deteriorate. We will soon learn whether cities, counties and the state of Texas can successfully [...]
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- Mitt Romney at private fundraiser: I might eliminate HUD – The Washington Post
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Bo’s housing news clips: Study finds zoning segregates lower-income students in lower-scoring schools.
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Texas LIHTC housing program rocked by second earthquake in two months
- Low-Income Housing Program Compels Building in Poor Texas Areas – NYTimes.com
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Bo’s housing news clips: National home foreclosures and Galveston housing woes are top stories in recent weeks
