Contact: Jason Rae, 414.344.1733
jason@neighborworksalliancewi.
Milwaukee, WI — Today, the NeighborWorks® Alliance of Wisconsin Chair Noel Halvorsen issued the following statement in response to President Trump’s budget proposal which would eliminate the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation, commonly referred to as “NeighborWorks® America”:
“The proposal by the White House will have a detrimental impact on people in every part of Wisconsin when it comes to achieving and maintaining homeownership.
Communities throughout Wisconsin have experienced positive economic impact from the housing and community development activities provided by the NeighborWorks® Alliance of Wisconsin, which is made up of six groups all chartered by NeighborWorks® America.
In our most recent Economic Impact Study, it showed that in 2014 the impact of homeownership services and development activities from the NeighborWorks® Alliance of Wisconsin sustained 495 jobs and generated more than $69.17 million in economic activity. These findings demonstrate the value of NeighborWorks® organizations in supporting homeownership and community development.
Losing NeighborWorks® America would be a tremendous setback for communities across Wisconsin. Although the agency’s budget is small, less than three thousandths of a percent of the federal budget, the 1.4 million that came to Wisconsin in 2016 was leveraged into tens of millions of direct investment in homes and neighborhoods and generated $13.8 million in real estate and income tax revenue at all levels of government.
Unfortunately, the White House proposal goes even further and includes elimination of the HOME program, CDBG, CDFI, funding for Habitat, Enterprise, LISC, and more. Essentially, the budget proposal empties the federal toolbox for underserved market housing investment and community revitalization. That would mean fewer Wisconsin families buying homes and less renovation of blighted houses in at-risk neighborhoods.
The NeighborWorks® Alliance of Wisconsin calls on Congress to reject the President’s proposal and craft a budget that maintains NeighborWorks® America and other critical agencies and programs that help families achieve and maintain the American Dream and help all of us build stronger communities.”
