Help us recognize individuals and projects in Indiana that have made a positive impact on the Hoosier community development field!   

Nominate worthy individuals and organizations for one of the Statewide Conference on Housing and Community Economic Development Awards by clicking here. The nomination form includes details on the criteria for each award. Winners will be honored on September 19, 2012 at the Awards Luncheon.

Symposium on Rural Philanthropy: Harnessing the Power of Local Wealth

Join Lt. Governor Becky Skillman at a symposium on Tuesday, July 17, aimed at providing information to elected officials, community foundation leaders, economic development leaders, agricultural community leaders and financial planners. Sessions are designed to help create partnership opportunities and offer ideas to encourage clients, families and residents to give back and invest in their rural communities.

Breakout sessions include:

• Finding Wealth: planting seeds to grow rural communities
• Capturing Wealth: how can community foundations better answer the question: 'Why should I give?' to reach wealth holders
• Economic Development 101: learning the language of economic development and community foundations
• The Wabash County Model: an Indiana example of banks, foundations and communities working together

For time and location details, please visit the  Office of Community and Rural Affairs web site.

Developing Indiana Neighborhoods: Program 3

Ice Miller LLP, the Indianapolis Coalition for Neighborhood Development (ICND), and IACED are pleased to present program 3 of a 4-part educational series, Developing Indiana Neighborhoods, for CDCs and other nonprofit owners and economic development officials in Indiana. The program will be offered at no cost to ICND and IACED members on Wednesday, August 1, 2012 from 3:00 pm - 6:00 pm.    

Program 3 will include an in-depth presentation of New Markets Tax Credits (NMTCs) and a reception/networking opportunity. The session will include a panel of bankers, lenders and professionals who have significant experience with the NMTC program. Following the presentation, the panel will be open for questions.

For location and event details, check out our blog post here. Registration is requested, but not required, by clicking here or by emailing Zachary Davis at zachary.davis@icemiller.com.

IACED has joined forces with the Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO) to support an Indiana microenterprise alliance. As Indiana's state microenterprise alliance, IACED will work closely with organizations statewide to develop an advocacy agenda that focuses on the huge, positive impact successful microenterprises have on the economy and the importance of access to capital and assistance opportunities. As employers, microenterprises account for 16% of all employed individuals in Indiana, a total of 570,337 people. Read the full press release here.

Across the Nation   

U.S. House Passes Transportation, Housing Funding

On Friday, June 29, 2012, the House of Representatives approved spending bills for the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD) and Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies (Agriculture) Fiscal Year 2013. The House-passed legislation, H.R. 5972, was approved for $51.6 billion for these budgets, $1.9 billion below the FY12 funding level.  Despite the budget reduction, the House version of the THUD bill actually included some increases for housing programs from FY12 levels.

Community Development Block Grants, for example, received $396 million more than the FY12 level.   In addition, the House voted to increase funding for the HOME Investment Partnership Program by $200 million over enacted FY12 levels.  Despite those bright spots, several programs saw deep cuts and even elimination in the House bill.  Under HR 5972, project-based rental assistance (PBRA) would receive $1.2 billion less than in the Senate bill, S. 2322.  Also, the House bill would fund Homeless Assistance Grants at $2 billion.  That is $200 million below the Administration's request, and advocates note that the House level is insufficient to renew all CoC grants.  The Housing Choice Voucher program was zeroed out of the House bill altogether.

For more information, check out our blog post by clicking here.

Housing Counseling Agencies To Be Scrutinized by the Internal Revenue Service

Earlier this year, the Internal Revenue Service's ("IRS") Exempt Organizations ("EO") division unveiled its annual work plan.  The plan highlights the division's priorities for the year in determining and examining tax exempt organizations. The work plan discusses the fact that residential foreclosures have mounted and the IRS has seen an increase in the number of exempt organizations involved in foreclosure assistance activities.  In 2012, both the Determinations and Examinations offices in the EO division will focus on the activities of mortgage foreclosure assistance organizations to determine whether they are fulfilling their exempt purpose, and whether they are complying with the requirements of section 501(q) of the Internal Revenue Code (the "Code").  Read additional intelligence from Venable LLP about this scrutiny by clicking here, or checking out our blog post here.

IACED received word in June that the national OneCPD technical assistance team that it is part of has received an additional $2.5 million in HUD funding (FY11). This brings the funding total for the team - led by the National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB) in San Antonio, Texas - up from $900,000 (FY10) to $3.4 million. Both applications were submitted jointly by NALCAB, National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National CAPACD) and the National Alliance for Community Economic Development Associations (NACEDA), of which IACED is a member organization.

Roll-out of the FY10 program - awarded in April 2011 - is now underway, and IACED is one of the first organizations in the nation to be task-ordered for this new TA program. IACED is one of only two NACEDA members currently working under the NALCAB contract; furthermore, IACED is under contract for two of NALCAB's four OneCPD technical assistance engagements underway to date. Both IACED engagements are in the needs assessment phase and will result in technical assistance being provided to two IACED member local units of government.

And while IACED staff members, Rose Scovel, Andy Fraizer and Jessica Love, all acted as team members with Jessica Love participating as a field team member on the first engagement, Jessica is acting as the team lead for the second engagement. She is leading a national team of independent consultants, as well as IACED team members, to develop a needs assessment that will inform HUD's decisions regarding the direct technical assistance that will be provided to its grantee. Site visits with both member governments were conducted during June; the first needs assessment report was completed in June, and the second will be submitted in July.

The OneCPD Integrated Practitioner Assistance System currently seeks to provide coordinated Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG), HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) and Housing Opportunity for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA) technical assistance to state and local entitlement communities and participating jurisdictions, as well as Community Housing Development Organizations (CHDOs). The new program - introduced in FY10 - will enable TA providers to address HUD grantees' multiple funding sources and organizational issues, instead of providing TA through program-specific silos. Ultimately, the TA programs for the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) and Section 4 Capacity Building program (funding to Habitat for Humanity, LISC and Enterprise to build the capacity of nonprofit organizations) will also be folded into the OneCPD TA program.