TITLE: Urging HUD to Include Tribes and Tribally Designated Housing Entities in the Section 8 Housing Voucher Program to Provide Rental Assistance
WHEREAS, we, the members of the National Congress of American Indians of the United States, invoking the divine blessing of the Creator upon our efforts and purposes, in order to preserve for ourselves and our descendants the inherent sovereign rights of our Indian nations, rights secured under Indian treaties and agreements with the United States, and all other rights and benefits to which we are entitled under the laws and Constitution of the United States, to enlighten the public toward a better understanding of the Indian people, to preserve Indian cultural values, and otherwise promote the health, safety and welfare of the Indian people, do hereby establish and submit the following resolution; and
WHEREAS, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) was established in 1944 and is the oldest and largest national organization of American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments; and
WHEREAS, Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHEs) and Tribal Housing Departments have developed in excess of $1 billion in Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) and other projects in Indian Country; and
WHEREAS, unlike public housing agencies, Tribes have not been eligible to apply for Section 8 rental assistance housing vouchers since the implementation of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act (NAHASDA); and
WHEREAS, NAHASDA does not provide for additional rental assistance funding such as Section 8 when Tribes develop and administer LIHTC units; and
WHEREAS, Tribes subsidize LIHTC developments with rental assistance from the Indian Housing Block Grant which has a significant impact on Tribes ability to utilize its NAHASDA grant for other purposes; and
WHEREAS, nothing in this resolution shall be construed to support changing Formula Current Assisted Stock funded pursuant to Subpart D of 24 CFR 1000.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Congress of American Indians does hereby urge Housing and Urban Development and the Congress of the United States to include Tribes in the Section 8 rental assistance program; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that this resolution shall be the policy of NCAI until it is withdrawn or modified by subsequent resolution.
CERTIFICATION
The foregoing resolution was adopted by the General Assembly at the 2016 Midyear Session of the National Congress of American Indians, held at the Spokane Convention Center, June 27 to June 30, 2016, with a quorum present.