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Borrowing Plan Provides Critical Tools for Communities, say Housing Advocates 6/1/2020 The New Jersey Assembly Budget Committee today voted in favor of legislation that authorizes the issuance of State bonds totaling $5 billion. Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey (the Network) President and CEO Staci Berger issued the following statement on the bill’s passage: “Everyone must have a safe, decent, and affordable home in order to protect the health of our families and communities. Health and housing are interconnected and interdependent. Renters and homeowners have struggled to keep a roof over their heads long before COVID-19 devastated our economy. In order to prevent our health crisis from exacerbating our housing crisis, the state must have the proper tools to provide critical social services for residents. Without the authorization of this proposal, investment in programs that help create homes people can afford in healthy communities like the Neighborhood Revitalization Tax Credit Program and the Affordable Housing Trust Fund would be at great risk. “We need to do better than return to normal, where a person earning minimum wage has to work nearly three full time jobs to afford a modest, two bedroom apartment. We can and must do better, and this is a step in the right direction. The bond measure under consideration provides a strong foundation for communities that would provide for resources that keep residents safe and in their homes.”
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Supporters
