Yearly Archives: 2016

U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Julián Castro named Jon Gresley to serve as HUD’s Regional Administrator in Region 9, which includes the western states of Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, and the U.S. territories in the Outer Pacific.

The Souferian Group, a Los Angeles-based real estate development, investment and advisory firm founded and led by Behzad Souferian and focused on developing distinctively branded and designed lifestyle-driven properties, has announced the closing of a full-floor lease for Soothe, an app-based on-demand massage technology company. The company’s expanded operations will occupy the entire sixth floor of 1800 North Highland Ave., a seven-story, Class A office structure located at the gateway to Hollywood’s world-renowned entertainment district.

Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Energy Committee Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) joined leading scientists who provided new data showing that the majority of ponderosa pine forests in the country are at grave risk of being killed by the new, more severe fires we are now seeing. New data shows that, without a new plan, increasing warm temperatures will result in 67 million acres of our country’s forests being lost to unnaturally severe wildfires—10 percent of U.S. forests

In accordance with the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, HUD published a Notice in the Sept. 16, 2016, Federal Register identifying Federal buildings and other real property HUD has reviewed for suitability for use to assist the homeless. The properties were reviewed using information provided to HUD by Federal landholding agencies or by GSA regarding their inventories of excess or surplus property. The list includes buildings and properties in Illinois, Kentucky, New Jersey, and Maryland.

The average amount of potentially harmful lead in the blood of children in low-income families living in federally assisted housing is significantly lower than comparable children not living in federally assisted housing. That's the principle conclusion of a study by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published today in the American Journal of Public Health

The National Institute of Building Sciences has completed development of a new guideline to help building owners and their design teams utilize building information modeling (BIM). The National BIM Guide for Owners (NBGO) draft is now available for public review and comment until Monday, October 31.

The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada (PUCN) adopted regulations today that protect NV Energy customers who had installed a solar system, or submitted an interconnection request, prior to Dec. 31, 2015.  The new “grandfathering” rules will allow those existing NV Energy solar customers to operate under previous net metering rules.  Following is a statement from Sean Gallagher, the vice president of state affairs for the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)

The Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), in partnership with Sandia National Laboratories, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, will form a new consortium intended to accelerate the development of module materials for photovoltaics (PV) and lower the cost of electricity generated by solar power.

A World Trade Organization (WTO) appellate body issued a report today affirming the United States victory in the U.S. challenge to India’s “localization” rules, which discriminated against imported solar cells and modules under India’s National Solar Mission. Following is a statement from Christopher Mansour, vice president of federal affairs for the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), on the decision

Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) today announced the committee’s schedule for the week of Sept. 19:

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today issued “Limited English Proficiency” (LEP) guidance that addresses how the Fair Housing Act would apply to claims of housing discrimination brought by people because they do not speak, read, or write English proficiently.  More than 25 million people in the United States do not communicate proficiently in English.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is partnering with Chrysler Liquidating Trust to provide funds to support VA efforts to end Veteran homelessness. The partnership is part of the MyVA Strategic Partnership Initiative, which works with external organizations to improve the delivery and access of care for Veterans

New House Education and the Workforce Committee Composite Retirement Plan Concept Will Provoke Vital Debate on the Best Way to Protect Workers, Retirees and Employers. The chief executive officer of the Associated General Contractors of America, Stephen E. Sandherr, issued the following statement today in response to the House Education and the Workforce Committee’s newly released composite retirement plan concept

The design and construction of healthier buildings is a key business benefit for building owners, developers, managers and investors, according to the results of a new SmartMarket Report released today by Dodge Data & Analytics and to which the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is a contributing partner.

Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), a senior member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, has introduced a bill to amend the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (CMZA) in order to include the District of Columbia in the definition of a coastal state, which would make D.C. eligible for federal coastal zone management funding. Norton’s bill would also give the District oversight for federally issued permits/facilities/actions that affect the coastal waters of the District. Norton said she believes the District’s omission from the CMZA was an unintentional oversight, as the CMZA was passed in 1972—before the District achieved home rule—and the territories were included.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) Builder Applications Survey (BAS) data for August 2016 shows mortgage applications for new home purchases increased by 5 percent relative to the previous month. This change does not include any adjustment for typical seasonal patterns

Mortgage applications increased 4.2 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending September 9, 2016. This week's results included an adjustment for the Labor Day holiday.

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has been awarded more than $4 million by the Department of Energy (DOE) to undertake three projects aimed at improving the energy efficiency of buildings, which account for more than 40 percent of the country’s energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.