Statewide partnerships address affordable housing challenges

Des Moines - Governor Branstad and Lt. Governor Reynolds today proclaimed April 21-27, 2013 as Affordable Housing Week in Iowa. Iowa joins organizations throughout the country in celebrating Affordable Housing Month, with this week declared specifically to bring awareness to the importance of affordable housing in Iowa.

"We've taken great strides to provide affordable housing opportunities for Iowans," said Governor Branstad. "We are committed to making even more progress to ensure an adequate supply of affordable housing is available to fit the needs of Iowa's diverse workforce, young professionals and seniors well into the future."

"The Iowa Finance Authority and the hundreds of local housing organizations, lenders, Realtors, service agencies and affordable housing advocates share the mission of advancing affordable housing opportunities for Iowans," said Lt. Governor Reynolds. "This shared dedication is impacting the lives of Iowans across the state every day, in turn making our neighborhoods, communities and state an even better place to call home."

The Iowa Finance Authority recently commissioned a statewide housing study that found many positive aspects of Iowa's housing market including a high homeownership rate, low rate of foreclosures and high affordability of housing. The study also detailed the most critical housing priorities over the next five years as workforce housing, affordable senior housing, accommodating preferences of elderly to age in place and the preservation of affordable multifamily units. The full study, including regional data is available at IowaFinanceAuthority.gov.

"The Iowa Finance Authority fulfills its mission through the partnership of thousands of local housing professionals," said Iowa Finance Authority Executive Director Dave Jamison. "Affordable Housing Week is an ideal time to say thank you for the tireless efforts of our partners and we look forward to working together to ensure Iowans have an affordable place to call home for generations to come."

The Iowa Legislature created The Iowa Finance Authority, the state's housing finance agency, in 1975 to undertake programs to assist in the attainment of affordable housing for Iowans. Since then, the Iowa Finance Authority's role has grown to include nearly 40 affordable housing, water quality and community development programs. The Iowa Finance Authority is a self-supporting public agency whose mission is to finance, administer, advance and preserve affordable housing and to promote community and economic development for Iowans.

SPRINGFIELD - April 18, 2013. Lt. Governor Sheila Simon issued the following statement regarding House Bill 997 sponsored by Rep. Brandon Phelps (D-Harrisburg). Earlier this month, Simon's Firearms Working Group released a 10-point legislative checklist to help guide debate on pending legislation.

"I appreciate Rep. Phelps' tireless work on crafting a constitutional law, and I thank him for talking with our Firearms Working Group as we worked to gather information from the many stakeholders involved in the concealed carry discussion. However, House Bill 997 as written today does not go far enough to guarantee public safety.

"HB 997, as currently written, relies too heavily on the FOID process to screen for an individual's criminal history, history of domestic violence, and mental health background to determine whether that individual could pose a danger. We know that the FOID screening is underfunded, understaffed, and unable to provide for safety within a short 30 day timeframe. We must include comprehensive background checks in a concealed carry law in Illinois.

"The working group also learned that most teachers and administrators at grade schools, high schools and colleges agree that we should keep guns out of our schools. This is consistent with the gut reaction of horror that parents feel at each school shooting. Concealed carry firearms should be prohibited from school grounds.

"This legislation is a good start, but there is still work to do. I oppose HB997 in its current form and encourage legislators to continue negotiations. I am optimistic that we can reach a timely compromise."

Both gun rights and violence prevention advocates urged the freshmen senators and representatives who comprised the Firearms Working Group to pass reasonable restrictions that balance the constitutional right to keep and bear arms with the responsibility to prevent violence.

Currently Illinois is the only state in the nation with a law that completely bans carrying concealed firearms. The law was declared unconstitutional in December by a three-member panel of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and Illinois now has until June to pass a law that permits people to carry concealed guns in public spaces.

Please visit www.ltgov.il.gov/guns for additional information about the Firearms Working Group and the legislative checklist.

DES MOINES, IA (04/18/2013)(readMedia)-- Maquoketa High School senior, Colton Fey, received the Paul Mann Youth Activist Award for Outstanding Leadership on Thursday, April 11 at the Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center in Des Moines before a group of nearly 400 educators attending the 2013 Iowa State Education Association (ISEA) Delegate Assembly.

The Paul Mann Youth Activist Award for Outstanding Leadership is named after Des Moines educator, Paul Mann, who encouraged students to work for causes that promote peace and justice. Fey received the statewide honor for his many volunteer activities and outstanding accomplishments.

"Colton is a natural born leader. His work in the community and among his classmates is an example of how one person does make a difference," said Tammy Wawro, president of the ISEA. "Iowa is home to many high-caliber students, and when someone like Colton stands out from the crowd, you can bet they are doing extraordinary work."

Fey's volunteer efforts include working with Club hOpe which is a community service organization in Maquoketa; volunteering with the local food pantry; leading the Toys for Tots in Jackson County; volunteering on a fundraising event called "Hearts of Fire" for the local fire department; and being a lead organizer for this year's Dance Marathon, raising over $10,000 for the Iowa City Children's Hospital.

Melinda Orr, a teacher at Maquoketa High School who nominated Colton, said, "Colton is one of the hardest working kids I have ever had in my classroom. He sets high expectations for himself academically and exhibits a stellar work ethic to meet these expectations. He is not one to shy away from hard work or effort whether it is studying for a test, completing a project, or volunteering to help another student who is struggling. Colton leads by example and follow-through."

--00--

Plan Will Improve 2,142 Miles of Highway, Replace or Rehabilitate 517 Bridges and Make Major Investments in Public Transit

SPRINGFIELD - Governor Pat Quinn today was joined by Illinois Transportation Secretary Ann L. Schneider to unveil a six-year, $12.62 billion construction program that will improve roads and bridges throughout Illinois while making major investments in public transportation. The projects are part of Governor Quinn's agenda to create jobs and drive Illinois' economy forward, while updating the state's transportation system. The upcoming highway, public transit, rail and airport projects will address critical infrastructure needs while making major transportation improvements throughout the state.

"Illinois is the transportation hub of the nation, and this program will ensure we have the modern infrastructure needed to compete with the world," Governor Quinn said. "This major investment in roads, bridges and public transportation will drive economic growth in every part of Illinois, and create tens of thousands of jobs."

The fiscal years 2014-2019 highway improvement program will improve 2,142 miles of highway, and replace or rehabilitate 517 bridges across Illinois. The plan includes $475 million to reconstruct the Circle Interchange in Chicago; $56 million to repair and upgrade I-74 in eastern Illinois; $83 million to resurface and replace bridges on I-57 in Marion, Pulaski, Union, Johnson and Williamson Counties; $76.2 million for a new Mississippi River bridge in Moline (in cooperation with the State of Iowa); and $40.4 million to resurface and repair bridges along Interstate 55 in Logan County.

"These projects will make our entire transportation system safer, easier, more efficient, and ready to accommodate our current and future needs," Secretary Schneider said. "But they come with another benefit - the fact that we will employ thousands of Illinois men and women, and support numerous Illinois businesses, while construction is underway."

For fiscal year 2014, the program has allocated $2.24 billion for road projects, $128 million for public transportation, $224 million for rail and $68 million for airport improvements. The total allocations for the multi-year program are $9.53 billion for roads, $1.81 billion for public transportation, $1.121 billion for rail and $159 million for airports.

The plan includes $7.2 billion in anticipated federal funds, $1.9 billion in state funds and the remainder from local and other sources. Additional bond authorization will be required to continue funding these transportation projects. The $580 million remaining for road and bridge projects from Governor Quinn's Illinois Jobs Now! capital construction program is also included in this multi-year program.

Projects that are part of the fiscal years 2014-2019 program will begin after July 1 this year. Governor Quinn and Secretary Schneider last month announced $486 million in road and bridge projects that will begin this spring is one of the largest early-season construction programs in the state's history.

Many of the projects announced today are funded through legislation Governor Quinn championed in his State of the State address earlier this year. Of those projects, IDOT is offering contractors a reimbursement rate of $10 an hour for hiring graduates of the Highway Construction Careers Training Program, an IDOT-sponsored initiative to encourage women and minorities to pursue careers in the transportation construction industry.

The multi-year transportation program builds upon the success of Governor Quinn's $31 billion Illinois Jobs Now! program, which is supporting more than 439,000 jobs over six years. It is the largest capital construction program in Illinois history, and is one of the largest capital construction programs in the nation. Prior to its passage by the Illinois General Assembly in 2009, Illinois had gone nearly a decade without a major program to address its critical infrastructure needs.

More information on the construction program may be found at http://www.dot.il.gov/opp/hip1419/hwyimprov.htm.