DHCD Announces Hearings on Proposed Changes in FY2017 CDBG Allocation Process - August 31, 2016

DHCD will hold hearings on September 8 (Worcester), September 9 (Boston) and September 14 (West Springfield on proposed major changes in the way it awards CDBG funds in FY2017.  Written comments will be accepted up to September 23.   It has posted a summary of the proposed changes, which include

• Eliminating Community Development Funds I and II and the Economic Development Fund

• Consolidating Economic Development, Planning and Reserves into a single rolling fund

• Communities may apply for a single activity only

• Communities will apply to activity-specific funds (e.g. Housing Activities, Public Facilities and Infrastructure, Public Social Services, Rolling Fund, Local Administration and Mini-Entitlements) and projects will compete against each other within those activity-specific funds

• Proposed Activity funding (percentage of the available allocation) is 32% for mini-entitlements and within the balance, 40% for housing activities, 30% for public facilities and infrastructure, 15% for public social services, 5% for rolling fund and 10% for local administration.

• Use of a revised Community Wide Needs (CWN) score.

Details on the hearing and proposed changes are posted on DHCD’s website