42 U.S.C. § 12721 - Findings

• Cite as: 42 U.S.C. § 12721

The Congress finds that-

(1) the Nation has not made adequate progress toward the goal of national housing policy, as set out in the Housing Act of 1949 [ 42 U.S.C. 1441 et seq.] and reaffirmed in the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968, which would provide decent, safe, sanitary, and affordable living environments for all Americans;

(2) the supply of affordable rental housing is diminishing;

(3) the Tax Reform Act of 1986 removed major tax incentives for the production of affordable rental housing;

(4) the living environments of an increasing number of Americans have deteriorated over the past several years as a result of reductions in Federal assistance to low-income and moderate-income families;

(5) many Americans face the possibility of homelessness unless Federal, State, and local governments work together with the private sector to develop and rehabilitate the housing stock of the Nation to provide decent, safe, sanitary, and affordable housing for very low-income and low-income families;

(6) reliable Federal leadership is needed to achieve an adequate supply of affordable housing for all Americans;

(7) to achieve the goal of national housing policy, there is a need to strengthen nationwide a cost-effective community-based housing partnership designed to-

(A) expand the supply of rental housing that is affordable to very low-income and low-income families,

(B) improve homeownership opportunities for low-income families,

(C) carry out comprehensive housing strategies tailored to local housing market conditions, and

(D) protect the Federal, State, and local investment in low-income housing to ensure affordability of the housing for the remaining useful life of the property;

(8) direct assistance to expand the supply of affordable rental housing should be provided in a way that is more cost-effective and targeted than tax incentives;

(9) much of the Nation's housing system works very well and provides a strong base on which national housing policy should build;

(10) an increasing number of States and local governments have been successful in producing cost-effective low-income and moderate-income housing by working in partnership with the private sector, including nonprofit community development corporations, community action agencies, neighborhood housing services corporations, trade unions, groups sponsored by religious organizations, limited equity cooperatives, and other tenant organizations;