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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)
3 program was enacted, and signed into law by President Gerald
4 Ford, as the centerpiece of the Housing and Community
5 Development Act of 1974; and
 
6     WHEREAS, The CDBG program has as its primary objective "the
7 development of viable urban communities, by providing decent
8 housing and a suitable living environment and expanding
9 economic opportunities, principally for persons of low and
10 moderate income"; and
 
11     WHEREAS, The CDBG program has considerable flexibility to
12 allow communities to carry out activities that are tailored to
13 their unique affordable housing and neighborhood
14 revitalization needs; and
 
15     WHEREAS, Throughout its 30-year history, the CDBG program
16 has been a partnership between the federal, state, and local
17 governments, business, and the nonprofit sector, which carry
18 out activities that improve the lives and neighborhoods of low
19 and moderate income families; and
 
20     WHEREAS, According to the Department of Housing and Urban
21 Development (HUD), in FY 2004 the CDBG program provided funds
22 for thousands of activities, assisting over 23 million persons
23 and households through such activities as expanding
24 homeownership activities, eliminating slums and blighting
25 influences, improving infrastructure such as roads, water and
26 sewer systems, libraries, and community centers, and providing
27 adult day care and after school care for children, homeless
28 housing facilities, employment training, transportation
29 services, crime awareness, and business and job creation; and
 
30     WHEREAS, The City of Chicago uses CDBG funds in the amount

 

 

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1 of $95.5 million to provide housing, economic development, and
2 various public services to approximately 400,000 people
3 annually; and
 
4     WHEREAS, The President's FY 2006 budget proposes to
5 completely eliminate the CDBG program; and
 
6     WHEREAS, Should such a proposal be enacted, it would have a
7 devastating effect on the State's CDBG program in the following
8 ways: (1) reduced number of housing developments; (2) reduced
9 business development and urban planning; and (3) elimination of
10 youth, violence prevention, health, and homeless services that
11 serve millions of people annually; therefore, be it
 
12     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
13 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
14 SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we urge the United States
15 Congress to preserve the Community Development Block Grant
16 (CDBG) Program within the Department of Housing and Urban
17 Development and provide FY 2006 funding of at least $4.7
18 billion overall, with no less than $4.35 billion in formula
19 funding; and be it further
 
20     RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this Resolution be sent
21 to the President of the United States Senate, the Minority
22 Leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of
23 Representatives, the Minority Leader of the House of
24 Representatives, and each member of the Illinois Congressional
25 delegation.