TRENTON – New Jersey’s statewide association of non-profit community development organizations applauded the Biden Administration’s plan to ease housing costs announced this morning. The Housing Supply Action Plan includes measures that are included in the Housing and Community Development Network of NJ’s (the Network) HouseNJ campaign. On the announcement, Network President and Chief Executive Officer Staci Berger cheered the news out of Washington, DC:

“We are thrilled that President Biden and his Administration are taking a whole of government approach to ensure that everyone has a safe, affordable place to call home. Housing costs are the largest share of any household’s budget, and for far too many of our neighbors, affordable homes are out of reach. More Americans are falling behind on their mortgage or rent, while struggling to afford food and utilities. President Biden’s Housing Supply Action Plan invests in housing security and stability. It closes the housing supply gap that’s holding back our families and economic recovery.

“Our nation’s housing crisis needs bold action. The Housing Supply Action Plan can help families on the brink of homelessness and will help HouseNJ. We urge state and federal officials to keep the momentum going by supporting transformative housing resources and investments in our communities.”

The Network’s HouseNJ campaign calls on Congress to enact a budget reconciliation bill that includes housing investments passed in the U.S. House of Representatives last year. These include: $25 billion to expand rental assistance to an estimated 300,000 households, protecting these households from the harmful impacts of inflation and preventing housing instability and homelessness; $65 billion to preserve public housing for its 2.5 million residents and future generations; and $15 billion in the national Housing Trust Fund to build or preserve more than 150,000 units of affordable, available, and accessible homes for people with the lowest incomes. The campaign also calls on Governor Murphy and legislative leaders to invest $975 million from the American Rescue Plan in critical housing programs.

Several measures of the Housing Supply Action Plan advance the HouseNJ agenda. The plan ensures that more government-owned supply of homes and other housing goes to owners who will live in them – or non-profits who will rehab them – not to large institutional investors. A similar measure, the Community Wealth Preservation Program, is currently under consideration here in NJ.

About the Housing and Community Development Network of NJ
The Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey is the statewide association of more than 270 community development corporations, individuals and other organizations that support the creation of affordable homes, economic opportunities, and strong communities. For more information on the Network, visit www.hcdnnj.org.