NEW YORK STATE RURAL ADVOCATES

Tkaczyk, on Main Street, offers plan for rural economy – Hudson Catskill Newspapers: News.

The Governor and the Legislature completed negotiating the state budget this weekend.  All of the budget bills have now been printed and introduced.  The Assembly returns to Albany on Thursday and the budget should be passed on time.

As we announced last week, the final agreement rejects the Governor’s proposed Article 27 Community Preservation Program and retains the Rural and Neighborhood Preservation programs.

RPC and NPCs received funding from two sources.  The program was funded “off budget” in an Article 7 bill at $3,539,000 with funds swept from the Mortgage Insurance Fund.  An additional $655,000 is found in the Aid to Localities bill and is therefore “on budget”  These combined sources should allow RPCs/NPCs to be funded at about last year’s levels or about $66,000 per group.  Having part of the program’s funding “on budget” is a good thing.  Each Coalition was funded at last year’s levels as well

There is a new Article 27 but this one creates a new Urban and Rural Communities Fund.  This new program provides funds for small rental projects, with a focus on mixed use and community revitalization projects.  The Rural and Urban Community funds are initially funded at about $5.4 million.The new Article 27 fund requires 1/3 match and defines rural as under 25,000 in population. Rural areas have a forty percent set aside for for this program.   This funds mixed use new construction or rehab with affordable housing at 90% of median, can be structured as a grant or loan and is available to for profits as well as non profits

The Mortgage Insurance Fund was also used to fund UI at $2million and RARP at $1.5 million. Rural Rental Assistance was funded at $20,400,000

We have received word that the Governor, the Assembly and the Senate agreed to turn back the Governor’s Article 27 Community Preservation proposal and to restore funding to Rural and Neighborhood Preservation Companies under the existing Articles 16 and 17.

Members of the Senate in particular were just unwilling to leave our communities without a dedicated stream of rural specific funding.  That has been our principle goal from the beginning of this session and therefore, we are pleased with this outcome.

The three way agreement also rejected the proposal to move HHAP to DHCR.  We think that this is also a very good thing.

We understand that the particulars of funding have not yet been worked out  and will likely be negotiated today.  The Senate continues to press for increased funding for the LPA programs and Main Street and RESTORE in particular and we will be following those discussions as well.

The legislature now hopes to return Monday, and if the budget does not get passed on Monday  it looks like they will take a break for the first 2 days of Passover and return at the end of the week

Speak Your Piece: ‘Rural’ and Housing | Daily Yonder | Keep It Rural.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is part of a series of columns on the USDA’s proposal to change eligibility requirements for some of its development programs. Previous columns have been by former congressional staffer Aleta Botts and the USDA’s Doug O’Brien.

Rural Advocates continue to respect the work done over the past 30 years and the recognition that rural resources, needs and plans for the future are different than those in urban areas.  While rural communities might be closer in nature to upstate urban communities than those with greater density downstate, they do not received entitlement programs, often do not have the benefit of professional planners and grantwriters on staff and available or resources of lenders and financial support. We will continue to advocate for protection of existing rural resources for our communities, the support of professional grassroots non profit development corporations and the need to do even more

USDA Rural Development-NewsRelease.

When Congress passed the FY13 Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep the government funded through the end of the fiscal year. The definition of “rural” states: 
Sec. 731. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any area eligible for rural housing programs of the Rural Housing Service on September 30, 2012, shall remain eligible for such programs until September 30, 2013.

No decisions on housing yet.

As reported in “Newsday”:
Overall, the 2013-14 spending plan would increase spending by less than 2 percent, to about $136 billion. That rises to $142.6 billion when federal aid for superstorm Sandy is included.

They hope to get the budget enacted by Sunday, one week before the fiscal deadline. Issues not yet decided include:

Economic development councils. Legislators have charged that Cuomo, who appoints the councils, has too much control over the hundreds of millions of dollars allotted to the panels. Leaders said they are still working on details to increase legislators’ sway.

School aid. The Cuomo administration said the overall increase statewide would be about $1 billion, though a good chunk of that would be “pension stabilization” funds and not traditional aid. Traditional aid increases would top $600 million, though details weren’t final.

Minimum wage. Lawmakers are set to raise the wage from $7.25 per hour to $8 by Jan. 1 and to $9 by the end of 2015. They are still discussing whether “tip” workers, such as waiters, will be included.

Funds for the disabled. Cuomo has proposed cutting about $120 million, or 6 percent, because the federal government reduced New York’s funds after saying the state overbilled. He said the reduction would be smaller but gave no details.

Utility tax. The 18-A surcharge, imposed in 2009 after the stock market meltdown, will be phased out over three years — beginning next year. Lawmakers said they were still working on how much it would be reduced annually.

Thank you to everyone who was able to make the trip to Albany to visit with your legislators this week. As you were surely told, it’s important to visit at home in the district AND in Albany during session when you are able in order to make your point among so many interests.