Housing
David is fighting to create and protect affordable, healthy and safe housing throughout Rhode Island because he believes that it is one of the keys to achieving the American Dream and central to creating strong neighborhoods and a thriving economy. David knows that an affordable home is valuable not just because of the shelter it provides, but also because of the pride and sense of common purpose it gives members of our community. He supports robust funding levels for affordable housing initiatives, and he will continue to fight for these programs in Congress and make them more effective. David is also an active member of the House Democratic Caucus Housing Stabilization Task Force.
David is fighting to create and protect affordable, healthy and safe housing throughout Rhode Island because he believes that it is one of the keys to achieving the American Dream and central to creating strong neighborhoods and a thriving economy. David knows that an affordable home is valuable not just because of the shelter it provides, but also because of the pride and sense of common purpose it gives members of our community. He supports robust funding levels for affordable housing initiatives, and he will continue to fight for these programs in Congress and make them more effective. David is also an active member of the House Democratic Caucus Housing Stabilization Task Force.
Throughout his time in Congress, David has made great efforts to defend our homeowners at risk of foreclosure, as well as revitalize our hardest hit neighborhoods. He strongly opposed Republican efforts to eliminate the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) and other foreclosure mitigation efforts. David is a proud co-sponsor of the Project Rebuild Act, legislation that would build upon the success of NSP by investing in the rehabilitation of distressed properties to stabilize communities and bolster the housing market, while also supporting 191,000 jobs nationwide.
As a co-sponsor of the Preserving Homes and Communities Act, David is working to increase transparency and accountability in foreclosure and mortgage modification processes. This legislation would require the evaluation of certain loans for modifications while also supporting mediation programs with grants at the state and local levels. David is also a co-sponsor of the Housing Opportunity and Mortgage Equity Act, legislation that would help stabilize the housing market by facilitating the refinancing of home mortgages held by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac at today’s low interest rates.
David has also written letters to numerous Administration officials, emphasizing the need to improve housing policies. He wrote to the U.S. Attorney General urging a full investigation into the misconduct and fraudulent actions behind the housing crisis, as well as the rejection of any settlement proposal that fails to hold wrongdoers fully accountable. David also joined colleagues in writing to Treasury Secretary Geithner requesting immediate changes to improve the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), as well as writing to Acting Director DeMarco of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) urging participation in the Principal Reduction Alternative (PRA) program, a HAMP extension program not currently being utilized by FHFA.
He has made constituent outreach a top priority, organizing events to inform Rhode Islanders about new opportunities within federal housing programs. In February 2012, David hosted a Housing Resource Fair in East Providence, which gave Rhode Island residents the opportunity to meet with more than 40 area banks and non-profit organizations to discuss local housing programs.