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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014 03_Proclaiming April 2014 as Fair Housing Month_2014.04.01CITY OF OWASSO, OKLAHOMA RESOLUTION 2014-03 PROCLAMING APRIL 2014 AS FAIR HOUSING MONTH IN THE CITY OF OWASSO IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE 2014 TULSA COUNTY URBAN COUNTY COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT WHEREAS, in April of 1968 one of the Nation's most important pieces of civil rights legislation- Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968- was adopted by the U.S. Congress; and WHEREAS, Title VIII prohibits a wide range of discriminatory housing practices; and WHEREAS, the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 strengthens the mandate to each community to affirmatively further fair housing; and WHEREAS, communities receiving Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and HOME funds are uniquely situated to positively impact housing opportunities; and WHEREAS, in affirmatively furthering fair housing, CDBG and HOME communities are required to actively promote wider housing opportunities for all racial and ethnic groups while maintaining a nondiscriminatory environment in all aspects of the public and private housing market within their jurisdiction. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Owasso proclaims April 2014 as Fair Housing Month in Owasso, Oklahoma. Attest: J ~ Sherry Bis4p, City Clerk of 0- ~ 9ss ~ N OFFICIAL 0 ~~1~L ) E A L) ADOPTED this 1 st day of April, 2014. Te City Wit out Limits. TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Coun( City of Owasso FROM: Bronce L. Stephenson Director of Community Development SUBJECT: Declaration of April 2014 as Fair Housing Month in Owasso DATE: March 28, 2014 BACKGROUND: The primary national objective of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program is the "development of viable urban communities by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment, particularly for persons of low and moderate incomes." All project proposals submitted for funding through the CDBG Program must document the achievement of at least one of the following national objectives: Y Provide benefit to low and moderate income persons Aid in the prevention or elimination of slums or blight Meet other community development needs having particular urgency, posing a serious or immediate threat to the health or welfare of a community To qualify for CDBG funding under the national objective of benefit to low and moderate income persons, the proposed project activities must show a positive or general improvement of living conditions in a definable geographic target area where at least 51% of the occupied households are of low and moderate income families. Low and moderate income families have an income equal to or less than the current Section 8 low income limits established by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD defines this as a family of three having a total household income of $43,500 or less or a family of four having a household income of $48,300. The funds for the CDBG program which have been granted to the City of Owasso come from the Tulsa County CDBG Urban County through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In addition, the City of Owasso is a member of the Metropolitan Tulsa HOME Consortium, another source of HUD funding. One of the policies regarding the utilization of these funds is that the grant recipients must implement an action to further fair housing in their community during each year that funding is received. One of the best ways to accomplish this is to participate in a nation-wide effort to affirmatively further fair housing opportunities for all and declare April as Fair Housing Month. RECOMMENDED ACTION: Staff recommends approval of Resolution No. 2014-03, declaring April 2014 as Fair Housing Month in Owasso. ATTACHMENT: A. Resolution 2014-03