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Resolutions Adopted at the
67th Annual Conference of Mayors
New Orleans, Louisiana
June 11-15, 1999 |
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COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND HOUSING
CELEBRATING THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF
THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT (CDBG) PROGRAM
WHEREAS, celebrating its 25th year, having been signed into law by
President Gerald Ford in 1974, CDBG is the Federal government’s most successful
domestic program; and
WHEREAS, the CDBG programs’s success stems from its utility, i.e.,
providing cities and counties with an annual, predictable level of funding which can be
used with maximum flexibility to address their unique neighborhood revitalization needs;
and
WHEREAS, based on HUD’s most recent annual report to Congress, between
FY1993 and FY1996 an estimated 14-17 million households benefitted from the CDBG program;
and
WHEREAS, During that same period an estimated 114,799 jobs was created through
CDBG-funded economic development activities; and
WHEREAS, the FY 2000 congressional budget resolution assumes deep cuts in HUD
programs brought about largely by the domestic spending cap enacted in the 1997 balanced
budget act; and
WHEREAS, under the cap, the House VA, HUD and Independent Agencies has been
allocated $5.8 billion less for FY2000 than the current year for all of the programs under
its jurisdiction - veterans, housing and community development, environment and space; and
WHEREAS, the Senate Subcommittee’s allocation is even less, a reduction of
$10.1 billion; and
WHEREAS, the budget resolution singles out the Community Development Block Grant
as an example of a program that should be cut, suggesting a $1.4 billion reduction; and
WHEREAS, HOME would also experience a deep cut, as would other domestic
programs,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that The U.S. Conference of Mayors opposes the
deep cuts of HUD programs in the budget resolution; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that The U.S. Conference of Mayors supports $5 billion
for CDBG for FY 2000, $250 million in revenues over the present year; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that The U.S. Conference of Mayors supports an increase
of $200 million of HOME to $1.8 billion; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that The U.S. Conference of Mayors calls on Congress to
substantially reduce the number of CDBG set-asides which have escalated over the last
several years.
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