NwONAP Update
January 14, 2009

Inside this issue:

	Colville Indian Housing Authority Dedicate 25 New Homes
	Grants.gov Early Registration Encouraged
	Funding Notifications
	Congratulations FY2008 Awardees
	On the Web–Foreclosure, Financial Literacy, NWSEED, DOE Energy Savers, and Regional Indian Housing Summit Report Published
	Funding & Training Opportunities
	Staff Assignments

Colville Indian Housing Authority Dedicates 25 New Homes

The Colville Indian Housing Authority (CIHA) dedicated the first of 25 new homes in the White Buffalo Meadows Colville Homes #1 Development in Nespelem, Washington on August 28th, 2008. CIHA used a combination of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) allocated by the Washington State Housing Finance Commission, HUD Indian Housing Block Grant, and Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco Affordable Housing Program dollars to finance the project. Fifteen of the units were set aside for large households, disabled, and homeless.

Elena L. Bassett joined the CIHA as Executive Director in October 2006, when the project was completing Phase 1: Infrastructure and street entrance. Dale Schrock, Capital Improvements Manager, was continuously involved in the project since its inception. He was instrumental in monitoring the $5.5M project during all phases of planning, development, and construction. CIHA approved a Master Plan in June 2003 for the entire 40 acre leased property for future development of multi-family units, single family units, apartments, park, and four-plexs. CIHA started with the development of 6.4 acres for the White Buffalo Meadows project. Construction of the two, three, and four bedroom homes, ranging in size between 1037 and 1560 square feet, was completed by Colville family and tribal member-owned Tomco Construction. Solar panels, donated by Travois, were installed on one energy-efficient demonstration home.

Lengthy applications were accepted from eligible tribal members while financial literacy classes were held to give tenants the additional opportunity to understand housing-to- income ratio, monthly debt, and setting financial goals. The rental families will be given the opportunity to become homebuyers after 15 years.

Congratulations to the staff and families at the Colville Indian Housing Authority.

Above: Colville Tribal Elder, Ms. RedThunder (left) cuts the ribbon to her new home with CIHA Executive Director, Elena Bassett (right).

Above: Elena Bassett (left) with NwONAP Grants Management Specialist, Bill Trombley at the Colville Homes #1 site.

Early Registration @ Grants.Gov

To "accelerate the process of awarding grants," HUD will now issue funding notices on a program-by-program basis rather than in a single, SuperNOFA notice as in years past.

On December 5, 2008, HUD published a Notice of Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 Opportunity to Register Early and Other Important Information for Electronic Application Submission via Grants.gov. The Notice provides detailed instructions for registration and is available from HUD's web site at http://www.hud.gov/grants/index.cfm (Select 2009 Early Registration Notice).

Remember; the entire registration process can take 2-4 weeks to complete! Contact HUD's Office of Administration, 202-708-0667 with any questions.

The major changes are summarized below:

• Adobe Reader- In FY 2009, applicants must download Adobe Reader 8.1.3 which is available on the Grants.gov website.

• Obtain a Dun and Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Number - In FY 2009, if the applicant entity identified in box 8a of the SF-424 already has a DUNS number, it must use that number when applying for funds this year.

• Register with the CCR - The Notice makes a distinction between the steps that must be taken by new organizations to register with the CCR for the first time and the steps that should be taken by organizations to update or renew their current registrations. CCR requires that registrants update their registration at least once a year to remain active in the database.

• Register with the Credential Provider - In January 2009, Grants.gov will be terminating service with the current Grants.gov credential providers. Therefore, Grants.gov will be providing credentials (username and passwords) to Grants.gov registrants. The Notice tells applicants how to check credentials. Some of the procedures will be similar to those in FY 2008, but others have changed. Applicants that need or want to change their submitter information or create a new username password should read and follow the directions carefully and if you experience problems, call Grants.gov help desk immediately.

• Register with Grants.gov - Opening an account with Grants.gov identifies the person as the AOR for the organization seeking funding. The procedures differ for registrations completed before or after January 11, 2009, or when grants.gov starts to offer credential provider services.

• Granting Approval of an AOR to Submit an Application on Behalf of the Organization - No changes from FY 2008 Notice. One in every 4 (25 percent) of ICDBG applicants that appealed under the Notice of Quality Assurance Review failed to complete this step and were rejected by Grants.gov as "Not Authorized to Submit on Behalf of the Organization." Applicants are urged to follow the instructions in the Notice to check the status of their usernames and passwords (AOR Status).

• RSS Feeds- In FY 2009, applicants are encouraged to sign up for one of three RSS Feed services to be notified of the funding opportunities (e-mail with Microsoft Outlook Directions, Windows Environmental Directions, and MAC Users Directions). "RSS" stands for "Really Simple Syndication" and is a way to keep up with news and information important to you and allows you to avoid browsing or searching for information on websites. Applicants that do not sign up for a RSS Feed notification service will still be able to search for funding opportunities on Grants.gov.

Funding Announcements

HUD's 2009 General Section of Notice of Funding Availability published December 29th.

USDA Rural Development's Water and Environmental Programs provide grants, loans and loan guarantees for drinking water, sanitary sewer, solid waste and storm drainage facilities in rural areas and cities and towns of 10,000 or less. Public bodies, non-profit organizations and American Indian governments may qualify for assistance. In recent years, the amount available for the Household Water Well System Grant program on a nationwide basis has been less than $1 million per year. The deadline for completed applications is May 31. An application guide is available on www.usda.gov/rus/water or call (202) 720-9583.

Funding Awards – 2008 ICBDG and RHED Grants

Congratulations to the 2008 Indian Community Development Block Grant and Rural Housing Economic Development Awardees!

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced the award of $3,257,000 to seven (7) tribes and tribal organizations in Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Thirteen tribes in the three states competed for the ICDBG funds. The funds will be used to build 4 new homes, rehabilitate more than 50 homes, fund the initial construction of a Head Start center, expand a dental clinic, construct a gas station and convenience store and lay new water and sewer lines. Over the last decade, the ICDBG program has awarded over $30 million in ICDBG funds in Idaho, Oregon and Washington.

"The hallmark of our ICDBG program is a flexibility that allows communities to decide how, with Federal funds, they can most quickly, effectively and efficiently meet their most urgent needs," said HUD Regional Director John Meyers. "We are very pleased to be able to provide these bricks-and-mortar funds to help these tribes and tribal organizations build stronger, more prosperous communities."

RHED grants help pay for land acquisition, new home construction, housing demolition, infrastructure improvements and construction training. Other possible uses include homeownership and financial counseling; financial assistance to homeowners, businesses and developers; creating microenterprises and small business incubators; and establishing lines of credit or revolving loan pools to benefit the local business community.

On The Web

• Neighbor Works America, designated by Congress as the administering agency for the National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling Program, announced over $202,000,000 million in grant awards to states and non-profit agencies to provide counseling and legal assistance to families facing the threat of foreclosure. In total, more than 1,500 nonprofit counseling agencies, local Neighbor Works organizations and HUD-approved housing intermediaries are expected to be engaged in this effort. More information and a listing of grantees by state including organizations from Washington, Oregon and Idaho states.

• HUD recently unveiled a new website entitled, "My Money, My Home, My Future",to assist the public with information on getting their financial house in order. The website has links to information on building wealth and managing money; homeownership, and how to achieve financial stability and avoiding foreclosure. It also contains a self-assessment tool kit and tips for avoiding foreclosure.

• Northwest Regional Indian Housing Summit Report Published. Thank you to all for your input and participation with this event held April 30th - May 1st, 2008 in Grand Mound, WA. Download the official report. Updates of Action Items completed will be posted shortly.

• With funding provided by the Bullitt Foundation, Northwest Sustainable Energy for Economic Development (Northwest SEED) has released a new tool to help Native American tribes develop a plan to achieve energy independence. Energy Planning: A Guide for Northwest Indian Tribes contains information and resources to help select and implement projects to conserve energy, generate clean renewable energy, construct efficient and environmentally friendly buildings, and other energy-related community or business projects-all tailored to the geography of the Northwest and the people of its tribes. The guidebook is designed to help tribes tackle energy planning in three primary ways. First, the guidebook presents information on the process of developing an energy plan. Second, the guidebook provides in-depth information about conservation and efficiency, renewable energy, green building, and other special project types. Finally, the guidebook includes a full section on resources and financing for both developing and implementing a tribal energy plan. For more information obtain a copy of the guide, or contact Leslie Moynihan, Project Manager, Northwest SEED, at (206) 267-2215

• The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) launched the Stay Warm, Save Money website and educational outreach campaign to help consumers be more energy efficient and save on energy costs. The information focuses on proactive ways to implement simple, cost-effective, energy saving solutions for both homes and businesses this winter and will expand to year-round home energy efficient tips. Energysavers.gov is designed to offer both low-cost and no-cost ways to lower energy costs, and includes easy energy saving tips. Energy Savers will be a year-round resource for Americans' energy needs, revised as the seasons change, with a weekly energy saving tip for consumers. It will offer both low-cost and no-cost ways to lower energy costs, and includes easy energy saving tips, financial assistance links, long-term energy saving solutions, and a blog covering energy saving topics. Visitors to the site can also download an energy saving to-do list and other materials to help save money on energy costs while staying warm this winter. More information.

Funding Available

Complete listing found on NwONAP Calendar of Events

Training Available

Complete listing found on NwONAP Calendar of Events

Staff Assignments