Housing Trust Fund
Every Texan Should Be Able to Live in a Safe, Healthy Home …
Housing is the very foundation of every healthy community. Investing in safe, affordable housing helps make Texas communities vibrant and healthy places for families to live by creating jobs, adding to the local tax base, increasing family stability, and reducing health, education, and transportation costs.
People with Disabilities Face a Crisis in Availability of Decent, Safe, Affordable and Accessible Housing
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development defines “Worst-Case Housing Needs” as families who pay more than half of their income for housing. Forty percent of very low-income households with a worst-case housing situation live with an adult family member with a disability.
Support the Texas Housing Trust Fund
The National MS Society supports Lt. Governor David Dewhurst’s goal of $40 million for the Texas Housing Trust Fund (THTF) for the 2010-2011 biennium. We also support the Texas Housing Forum proposal to identify a permanent funding source for the Texas Housing Trust Fund with a long term funding goal of $50 to $100 million per year. Analysis indicates a document recording fee of just $10 could generate $40 million per year for the Housing Trust Fund.
All Texans Benefit from the Texas Housing Trust Fund
The Texas Housing Trust Fund is good for the economy. Housing construction creates jobs, wages, and tax revenues which stimulate the economy. Rehabilitation of deteriorated properties enhances property values and serves as a catalyst for other neighborhood and community improvements. Communities must recognize the cost of not providing affordable housing. The lack of affordable housing cuts Texans off from supportive communities, and employment and educational opportunities.