April 2, 2007

President Bush released his FY 2008 Federal Budget to Congress on February 5. The President’s budget proposes only $2.986 billion in formula funding for the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program in FY 2007, a reduction of $736 million from last year. The Administration is unrelenting in its position to decrease funding for the program. We need your help to fight back against these cuts. National Community Development Week is the perfect time to enhance the visibility of the program through week-long activities.

National CD Week will be celebrated from April 9-15. The theme for this year’s celebration is CDBG: Building Strong Communities. Throughout the 2007 celebration, focus on the how the program has strengthened your community, particularly how the program:

• leverages other public and private resources in your community;

• has helped create partnerships within the local community;

• has helped the most vulnerable in the community

National CD Week also provides the opportunity for you to showcase the projects and programs funded in your community by CDBG and provides the opportunity to get your congressional members, the local press, and your community at-large involved in the celebration. The development of a local fact sheet on how the program has assisted your community throughout the years provides key information to the public and congressional members.

To help you celebrate CD Week, the National Community Development Association (NCDA) has available various promotional items for you to show your support for the program during CD week. These items include T'shirts, baseball caps, travel mugs, posters, and postcards. To order any of these products, please complete the attached order form and fax it to NCDA.

For more information and an order form, contact The National Community Development Association at 202-293-7587.