Archives

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development Under Secretary Lisa Mensah joined Under Secretary Kevin Concannon of the Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, community members, and residents of the Laurel Woods Apartments in Ashland, Va., to celebrate an interagency partnership against childhood hunger

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that three Maryland men have agreed to settle charges that they defrauded investors in a company that owns and operates residential and commercial real estate. Boston-based Signator Investors Inc. and one of its supervisors agreed to settle separate charges that they failed to supervise two of the men who worked in Signator’s Maryland office.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today unveiled the HUD Resource Locator – an innovative mobile app and website to further expand and enhance traditional HUD customer service.  The resource locator will offer real-time HUD housing information at the fingertips of people looking to quickly connect with building managers, public housing authority representatives, and property management companies to inquire about housing availability and other housing-related questions

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced a poster contest to highlight green infrastructure and low-impact development projects in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Texas. Did your business build a parking garage with a green roof? Do your city government buildings harvest rainwater? EPA wants to hear about projects like these in preparation for the EPA Region 6 Stormwater Conference.

Enterprise Community Partners Inc. (Enterprise), a national organization that creates and advocates for affordable housing in thriving communities, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today released a national emergency preparedness staffing toolkit for multifamily housing. Enterprise and HUD developed Ready to Respond: Disaster Staffing Toolkit to help affordable housing organizations build emergency plans that promote business continuity, resident engagement and building protection

As part of the Obama Administration’s effort to cut energy waste in the nation’s buildings, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today recognized Arizona’s Dysart Unified School District (USD) for increasing the use of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies at 25 schools. Through the department’s Better Buildings Challenge, Dysart USD has committed to 20 percent energy savings over 10 years, spanning more than three million square feet of building space.

The installed price of distributed solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the United States continues to fall precipitously. This is according to the latest edition of Tracking the Sun, an annual PV cost tracking report produced by the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).

A Middlesex County, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 36 months in prison for his role in a large-scale mortgage fraud scheme that caused millions of dollars in losses, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced $63 million in loans and grants for 264 renewable energy and energy efficiency projects nationwide that USDA is supporting through its Rural Energy for America Program (REAP).

Bobi Garrett, deputy laboratory director for strategic programs and partnerships at the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), was recognized by the Denver Business Journal as one of the region's top female executives in the energy industry.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Julián Castro, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow and Gary C. Peters, and Congressman John Conyers, Jr., announced the allocation of $8.9 million from the Community Development Block Grant Declared Disaster Recovery Fund (DDR) to the City of Detroit. The funds will help Detroit become better prepared for future floods and other natural disasters, and assist with planning and implementation costs associated with resilient projects in the Brightmoor, Mt. Elliot and McDougall-Hunt neighborhoods, stemming from August 2014 flooding damage

Edward Dacy, 77, most recently of West Melbourne, Fla., was sentenced today to six years in prison on charges stemming from a multi-million dollar mortgage fraud scheme involving 45 properties and $16 million in mortgage loans used for the purchase of residential real estate in the District of Columbia and Maryland

The Department of Justice filed a statement of interest today arguing that making it a crime for people who are homeless to sleep in public places, when there is insufficient shelter space in a city, unconstitutionally punishes them for being homeless. The statement of interest was filed in federal district court in Idaho in Bell v. City of Boise et al., a case brought by homeless plaintiffs who were convicted under Boise ordinances that criminalize sleeping or camping in public

Indian housing market segment has undergone several transformations during the past. Today, the improved housing options, growing investment opportunities, and entry of various real-estate developers have entirely revolutionized the segment after years of spontaneous development. Apartments, villas, and township projects have sprung up all across the nation, and fresh new master plans of the cities have been prepared to include several sub-urban and peripheral locations within the city.

What U.S. cities are doing to reduce their energy use is outlined in a new report from the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) that sets the stage for broader discussion and analysis. Given increasing urbanization and their large energy footprint, cities are a prime focal point for establishing a clean energy future.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today that it is issuing a proposed rule that would amend its existing regulations regarding the equal participation of faith-based (religious) organizations in HUD programs.

In keeping with President Obama’s commitment to empowering tribal nations, rebuilding their homelands and strengthening their economies, Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn today announced that he has approved the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians’ probate code, which the Department of the Interior’s Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) will start applying when probating trust or restricted lands within the Fond du Lac Reservation in Minnesota

House Republicans forced adjournment a day early last week in flight from a Senate Republican transportation bill. To find the source of the stand-off, look no further than the Republican budget. The surface transportation bill was a “two-for” – a readymade basic need during construction season – and a must-pass bill that must be authorized this year. Yet, the Republican budget, for the first time in our history, cut almost all new highway and transit funding.

The U.S. Green Building Council applauds President Obama and EPA Administrator McCarthy for their leadership this week in adopting the Clean Power Plan - a measure critical to the nation’s efforts to address climate change and all the human risks and impacts it entails. Importantly, EPA’s final rule aims to take advantage of market forces to realize significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions along with co-benefits to public health, such as fewer heart attacks and asthma attacks

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) today delivered the following statement during a committee hearing exploring alternatives to help families and children reduce reliance on foster care group homes