ICYMI: National Fair Housing Alliance President Lisa Rice Stresses Importance of Funding for Housing Programs in Reconciliation Package

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 8, 2021

Media Contact: Izzy Woodruff | 202-898-1661 | IWoodruff@nationalfairhousing.org

ICYMI: National Fair Housing Alliance President Lisa Rice Stresses Importance of Funding for Housing Programs in Reconciliation Package

Washington, D.C.— Homeownership is one of the most significant drivers of wealth creation, yet it remains elusive for millions of socially and economically disadvantaged Americans. In a recent article by POLITICO, National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) President and CEO Lisa Rice stressed the importance of including significant funding for housing programs in the upcoming reconciliation legislation. NFHA has strongly advocated for the inclusion of funding for first-generation down payment assistance programs to ensure more Black, Brown, and working-class families have access to homeownership in the face of decades of discriminatory government policies. 

Below are excerpts from the article by POLITICO: 

‘It’s going to be rough’: Waters fights housing cuts in budget bill 

By Katy O’Donnell, 10/6/21

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“‘We have all these coalitions of industry groups, housing groups, civil rights groups who are beating down the door of the White House to make sure that they keep housing provisions in the reconciliation bill,’ said Lisa Rice, president and CEO of the National Fair Housing Alliance. ‘If you don’t address housing, you’re not going to be able to address anything else that you’re trying to get done from an equity standpoint.’”

“‘I cannot possibly see the White House folding on this issue,’ Rice added. ‘You cannot address issues of racial inequity if you do not address housing inequity — it is an impossibility. They’re so inextricably linked.’”

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“Without the housing money, she said, the plan would not advance racial equity.”

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The National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) is the country’s only national civil rights organization dedicated solely to eliminating all forms of housing and lending discrimination and ensuring equal opportunities for all people. Through its homeownership, credit access, tech equity, education, member services, public policy, community development, and enforcement initiatives, NFHA works to dismantle longstanding barriers to equity and build diverse, inclusive, well-resourced communities.