by Pamela Sosne Kond?

After years of focusing NLC?s ongoing work to ensure that the federal government continues to fund programs that support local housing efforts, the Community and Economic Development (CED) Steering Committee used a major portion of its fall meeting in Milwaukee to focus on local housing policy and what NLC can do to help cities devise local housing strategies.

Committee Chair, Henry Marraffa Jr., council member, Gaithersburg, Md., commented, ?Generally, the CED committee?s federal role meant fighting proposed cuts and program phase-outs during the annual federal budget and appropriations process. Going forward, we hope to play a lead coordinating role in NLC?s ongoing efforts to help city leaders with their local housing challenges.?

The meeting, hosted by Milwaukee Alderman Joe Davis Sr., was an exciting first step for committee members.

Jeff Lubell, executive director, Center for Housing Policy, guided the committee as the members began their new challenge. He used some preliminary data from a report on local strategies to address housing for moderate-income working families, like teachers, police officers and other public employees.

Helping cities meet local housing needs has been on NLC?s agenda for many years from many perspectives, including providing training and technical assistance on housing issues, Leadership Training Institute seminars, Congress of Cities and Exposition workshops, corporate partnerships and surveys of local housing needs.

The issue demonstrates the importance of broad NLC collaboration to produce clear and useful outcomes for cities and towns, drawing on existing capacity, resources and partnerships.

Jeff Comerchero, council member, Temecula, Calif., and longtime member of the CED committee, noted, ?There was strong consensus that the committee agrees with the approach that NLC is taking on this issue.?

In other areas of work, the committee also heard from Eric Smith, finance professor from Tulane University in New Orleans, about economic development after a disaster. After the devastating natural disaster of Hurricane Katrina, one year ago, the committee has been working on updating its federal policy on this issue.

The committee also discussed the Community Development Block Grant program and comprehensive immigration reform.

The steering committee will bring its recommendations and ideas to the CED Policy and Advocacy Committee, which meets at the Congress of Cities, Dec. 5-9 in Reno, Nev.

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