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MortgagePoint ยป Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 64 June 2024 J O U R N A L BIDEN-HARRIS ADMINISTRATION SPOTLIGHTS HOUSING CLIMATE RESILIENCE EFFORTS A s part of President Biden's Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Department of Hous- ing and Urban Development (HUD) announced nearly $67 million in new grant and loan awards for 12 properties through its Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP), bringing the total fund- ing awarded under this program to more than $610 million. These grants and loans will help to renovate over 14,000 homes that house low-income persons, families, and elderly, making them safer and more pleasant, particularly during extreme weather events. "At HUD, we work to deliver on President Biden's Investing in Ameri- ca agenda, investing millions more to ensure the families that we serve live in homes that are healthier," HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman said. "These investments will reduce costs and make homes healthier, cheaper to operate, and climate resilient." Julia R. Gordon, Assistant Secretary for Housing, and Ethan Handelman, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Multi- family Housing, announced the new grant and loan awards at an event held at Washington Park apartments in Cincinnati. The property, owned by Preservation of Affordable Housing, Inc., earned a $2.2 million surplus cash loan award from HUD for energy efficiency and climate resilience modifications for 37 houses serving low-income individuals and families in Washington Park. "Today's announcement underscores the keen appetite by owners of assisted Government housing to increase energy efficiency and climate resilience measures across the country and how the President's Invest- ing in America agenda helps meet that need," Gordon said. "So far, properties in 36 states and the District of Columbia are putting GRRP funding to work to finance critical upgrades benefitting residents, owners, and communities." All of the investments announced will advance environmental justice in ac- cordance with President Biden's Justice40 Initiative, which aims to direct 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal invest- ments to underserved communities that are underinvested and overburdened by pollution. "The enhancements being made to properties using GRRP funding will make the homes of low-income families safer, more efficient, and healthier to live in." Handelman said. "We're pleased to support these efforts to improve the nation's affordable housing stock while also supporting efforts to combat climate change." Retrofitting these homes will reduce carbon emissions, safeguard residenc- es from extreme weather events, and advance the President's housing supply and clean energy agenda, ensuring affordable housing remains accessible to people and building owners across the country. In fact, two-thirds of the recipients announced live in environ- mentally disadvantaged neighborhoods, as defined by the White House Council on Environmental Quality's Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool. "Far too many Americans struggle to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer," said John Podesta, Senior Advisor to the President for International Climate Policy. "Today's awards from the Department of Housing and Urban De- velopment will boost the quality of life for thousands of moderate- and low-in- come American families by making their homes safer and more comfortable." The grants and loans made available are the third set of awards made under the GRRP's Leading Edge category, which requires property owners to commit to achieving recognized, high performance green certifications, such as the National Green Building Standard