December 8, 2009 - A host of U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) officials and Washington housing advocates told New England Housing experts Dec. 4 that HUD, the U.S. Dept. of Transportation (DOT) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are preparing to provide federal aid for coordinated housing-transit-environmental policy under the Partnership for Sustainable Communities. Another important initiative is U.S. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd's proposed Livable Communities Act.

David Fink, the Policy director for The Partnership for Strong Communities, was on a panel on Dodd's legislation with Sharon Price, the National Housing Conference's policy director, and EPA regional smart growth director Rosemary Monahan. The trio of housing advocates said that educating and organizing their towns to find locations where density could be created near transit - and organizing their state agencies that work with EPA, HUD and DOT - would be the most effective approach to obtaining the federal money.

The conference also heard HUD officials William Apgar, Sandra Henriquez and Barbara Sard - and USDOA Undersecretary Dallas Tonsager - advise that passage of the healthcare reform legislation in Congress will clear the way for passage of the HUD appropriations bill - now in conference - and focus attention on such issues at the National Housing Trust Fund and the Low Income Housing Tax Credit.