Pelosi: House Passes National Affordable Housing Trust Fund Act

October 10, 2007

Washington, D.C. - Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement today after the House approved H.R. 2895, National Affordable Housing Trust Fund Act of 2007, by a vote of 264 to 148. The bill, which provides the largest expansion in federal housing programs in decades, will initially allocate between $800 million and $1 billion annually directly to states and local communities, without increasing government spending or the federal deficit:

'The National Affordable Housing Trust Fund will help end the affordable housing crisis in America by producing or preserving 1.5 million units of low- and very low-income housing over the next 10 years. The bill will assist cities and states address the most urgent affordable housing needs in their communities while keeping our promise of fiscal responsibility to taxpayers with no new deficit spending.

'The lack of affordable housing is now one of the most serious social and economic issues facing our nation. Without an adequate supply of affordable housing, millions of Americans have been forced to spend as much as half of their income on housing. This bill will increase the supply of affordable housing available to our nation's lowest-income households, directing 75 percent of the funds to provide housing for very low-income residents--those making less than 30 percent of an area's median income.

'Working families in San Francisco and across the country should not be forced to choose between housing, health care, food, and other basic needs. In San Francisco, where the cost of housing is among the most expensive in the nation, Trust Fund dollars will primarily be used to provide affordable housing for residents making less than $28,000. Over the next decade, thousands of the poorest San Franciscans could benefit from the affordable housing provided by the Trust Fund.'