| January 5, 2005
ACTION ALERT: RENTAL HOUSING
SUPPORT PROGRAM
We are working to pass the
Rental Housing Support Program (HB 626) during the
last two days of the current state General Assembly
session—January 10 and 11. HB 626 is being amended
to increase bipartisan support for the bill, including
the following amendments:
- Putting a cap on administrative costs for local
administering agencies that will run program.
- Exempting public utilities from paying the additional
charge when filing an easement. This addresses
a concern raised by the Illinois Rural Water Association.
- Reducing the surcharge from $11 to $10 with
$1 of each surcharge remaining in counties (instead
of $2) and $9 going to the Rental Housing Support
Program Fund.
We need to contact all members
of the Senate and House to ask them to support HB
626.
In the Senate particularly
important members are: Bomke, Brady, Cronin, Dillard,
Demuzio, Forby, Jacobs, Radogno, Rauschenberger, Risinger,
Shadid, Dave Sullivan, John Sullivan, Walsh, Welch,
and Winkel.
In the House, we particularly
need to urge Democrats to contact Speaker Madigan
expressing their support for HB 626 with the amendments.
Your state legislators
should be in their district offices this week. Please
contact Bob Palmer at 312-939-6074 or bob@statewidehousing.org
for additional information and with any feedback you
get from your state legislators. Thanks!!
BACKGROUND
The Rental Housing Support
program would create a state-funded rental assistance
program which would make rent affordable to families
at 30% or below of area median income (around $19,000
in Illinois). A dedicated fund would be created at
the Illinois Housing Development Authority to:
-
Provide grants to local agencies to create local rental
assistance programs. Recipients of the grants
would provide subsidies directly to landlords,
who in turn would charge affordable rents to low-income
tenants.
-
Provide grants for long-term operating
support for new or rehabbed developments of affordable
housing. The grants would allow for the units
to remain affordable over an extended period of
time.
Bob Palmer
Statewide Housing Action Coalition
11 E. Adams #1501
Chicago, IL 60603
( 312) 939-6074
(312) 939-6822 (Fax)
www.statewidehousing.org
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