Support the Housing Trust Fund

by Lesley Hatch, COO/Vice President and Candice Bennett, Director of Development

It’s been a difficult week down in Richmond, as you probably have seen in the news. Not receiving much attention has been the recommendations released by the Virginia House Appropriations and Senate Finance Subcommittees for the 2019-2020 biennial budget. Despite the efforts to provide a $750 million incentive package over 15 years for Amazon, as well as $50 million for Micron, it’s incredibly disappointing that the House recommendations included no increase to the Housing trust fund which will be a critical tool in supporting both our current and future residents in securing housing near these employment centers; the Senate recommendations included $1 million – just 5% of the executive proposal – over two years.

The Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance issued a press release responding to these recommendations. You can read the full release here.

While the subcommittees have released their recommendations, the budget still needs to go through reconciliation. We can still make our voices known by calling our local state senators and delegates and letting them know how important affordable housing is to our community and our economy. If you aren’t sure who your local representatives are, you can visit this website.