PR 25-0673 — Home Purchase Assistance Program Protection Congressional Review Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2024

___________________________ENROLLED CouncilmemberORIGINAL RobertA C.RESOLUTION 25-435 IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA March 5, 2024 To declare the existence of an emergency, due to congressional review, with respect to the need to remove restrictions that are preventing eligible prospective homeowners from using Home Purchase Assistance Program funding.

White, Jr.

4 A PROPOSEDRESOLUTION ________ 8 IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ______________________ To declare the existence of an emergency, due to congressional review, regarding the need to remove restrictions that are preventing eligible prospective homeowners from using Home Purchase Assistance Program funding.

(c) Eligible applicants to HPAP must be the head of their household, a first-time homebuyer, have very low- to moderate-income, have not had an ownership interest in any residential real estate within 3 years prior to the application, live in the purchased home as their primary residence, purchase a home in the District, and have a good credit rating.

(e) The Department of Housing and Community Development (“DHCD”) oversees HPAP, while the Greater Washington Urban League (“GWUL”) and the District’s Housing Finance Agency (“HFA”) assess applicants’ eligibility and administer HPAP.

(g) On June 26, 2023, DHCD sent a letter to the roughly 700 eligible HPAP applicants notifying them that HPAP funding had run out for Fiscal Year 2023, and applicants without ratified sales contracts and confirmed closing dates would have to wait until Fiscal Year 20242024, beginning on October 1, 2023, to receive funding.

however, many applicants stayed the ENROLLED ORIGINAL course and patiently awaited HPAP reopening in October.

(k) The new restrictions most directly impacted very low- and low-income households, including households on fixed incomes likesuch as seniors and people with disabilities, who often rely on HPAP financing to achieve their dreams of homeownership because they are not eligible for larger loans from first trust lenders.

Participants shared they already had notices of eligibility, had waited for the funding to reopen,reopen and had invested thousands of dollars and countless hours on inspections and other purchase costs, only to now be excluded.

(n) On December 19, 2023, the Council unanimously adopted the “HomeHome Purchase Assistance Program Protection Emergency Amendment Act of 2023”2023 (“emergency act”) to ensure that eligible HPAP applicants who received notices of eligibility prior to DHCD’s changed policy could utilize HPAP loans, as intended.

The Actemergency act became law on January 10, 2024, and will expire on April 9, 2024.

(o) On January 9, 2024, the Council adopted “HomeHome Purchase Assistance Program Protection Temporary Amendment Act of 2023,”2023, which was enacted on February 1, 2024, and transmitted to Congress on February 9, 2024.2024 (“temporary act”).

(p) The temporary measureact is not projected to become law until April 12, 2024 – 3 days after the emergency legislationact expires.

ThisIdentical identical emergency legislation is therefore necessary to prevent a gap in the law between the expiration of the emergency act and the effective date of the temporary act.

The Council of the District of Columbia determines that the circumstances enumerated in section 2 constitute emergency circumstances making it necessary that the Home Purchase Assistance Program Protection Congressional Review Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2024 be adopted after a single reading.