Ensures Fiscal Responsibility and Increases Efficiency
HUD’s budget continues efforts to transform the way HUD does business and builds on the success of Transformation Initiative (TI) with an up to $80 million TI Fund transfer for:
• Providing Technical Assistance online and through NOFAs, which speeds delivery
• Expanding the Family Self Sufficiency Program, and streamlining for better outcomes
• Providing flexibility for the Operating and Capital Funds
• Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative
The Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative will include concrete, specific proposals to grow our economy and help the middle class and will be fully paid for with a balanced package of spending and tax reforms.
It will demonstrate how, by simply closing a few unfair tax loopholes and reforming spending programs, Congress could achieve significant economic goals in research, education, manufacturing and skills training. It will be evenly split between defense and non-defense ($28 billion for each). This is consistent with the model established in the Bipartisan Budget agreement, providing equal dollar-for-dollar increases above the current law discretionary spending caps for both defense and non-defense. (This level would fully eliminate the remaining non-defense discretionary sequestration cuts in FY2015.)
To list just a couple of HUD-specific examples, the Opportunity, Growth and Security Initiative will include:
• An additional $280 million for the Choice Neighborhoods Program, to fund comprehensive neighborhood revitalization strategies in 7 to 10 additional high-poverty neighborhoods;
• An additional $125 million to further expand the Jobs-Plus program to assist a total of 50,000 public housing residents to secure employment and increase their earnings;
• And $75 million for the Integrated Planning and Investment grants program to support 30-40 regional and community planning efforts that coordinate housing, land use, economic and workforce development, transportation, and infrastructure investments.
Read HUD’s proposed FY 2015 budget here.
