The Preservation Resource Center of New Orleans and other organizations cannot continue in our missions without your help!
Last month, the White House released its Fiscal Year 18 budget blueprint, which calls for a staggering $6.7 billion cut in Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs. In New Orleans alone, this reflects millions lost in Community Development Block Grants and HOME Investment Partnership Program funds along with the elimination of programs like AmeriCorps. This prioritized defunding will have a major effect on New Orleans nonprofits working to create affordable housing, assist homeowners with repairs to their homes, and rehabilitate blighted properties throughout the city.
What this means for the Preservation Resource Center of New Orleans:
- Rebuilding Together New Orleans (RTNO), which has completed over 1,400 home repair and community revitalization projects since 1988, could have its capacity cut in half.
- Over 200 AmeriCorps members have served with us in the last decade; plans to eliminate AmeriCorps will be a terrible loss for the PRC.
- Operation Comeback, which has rehabilitated 105 neglected and vacant structures since 1987, could be cut by one-third.
The Preservation Resource Center is at risk, but so is the health and growth of our entire state.
New Orleans and communities across Louisiana have seen incredible revitalization thanks to the utilization of the Historic Tax Credit (HTC), the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC), and the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC). The "A Better Way" tax reform legislation package blueprint does not include the continuation of these three vital credits.
Now is a critical time for Louisiana to build on its successes, and we need the HTC to remain in place to do that.
Help us fight this double threat - HUD budget cuts and the elimination of tax incentive programs! Your signatures, emails, and calls to your legislators count!
Dear (Member of Congress),
I write to you out of concern for Louisiana’s future housing stability and economic vitality. Proposed budgetary cuts to the Department of Housing and Urban Development budget, specifically for Community Development Block Grants, HOME Investment Partnership Program funds, and the elimination of AmeriCorps, will severely limit non-profit organizational capacity to address housing needs and combat the effects of disinvestment in our communities. Demands for these funds already outstrip their supply; your defense is crucial for these programs to continue providing the resource flexibility our communities rely on to address their local housing needs.
Other incentive based programs, such as the Historic Tax Credit (HTC), have proven records of successful transformation for all Louisiana communities, small and large. In Louisiana, between 2002 and 2015, the Federal Historic Tax Credit has:
• Assisted in the completion of 691 historic rehabilitation projects totaling over $2.3 billion in development costs.
• Created over 19,000 construction jobs and over 20,000 permanent jobs.
• Generated over $1.20 in new tax revenue for every $1.00 of tax credit utilized. It pays for itself!
Please, show your support for the revitalization of Louisiana by fighting for the HTC during tax reform and becoming a cosponsor of “The Historic Tax Credit Improvement Act” (S. 425 and H.R. 1158). This important legislation demonstrates support for the HTC and will make it easier for smaller projects, such as those in our Main Street communities, to access the HTC.
Through your leadership on this issue, you can encourage Louisiana’s economic vitality by defending the financial incentives that allow developers at every scale, non-profit and for-profit, to continue in their commitment to their communities. Please defend these tools that allow communities to address their housing needs and blight remediation, while stimulating economic development and job-creation, and the continued maintenance of our built heritage.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
