{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.heinrich.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/heinrich-lujan-leger-fernandez-welcome-over-1-million-to-break-down-barriers-to-home-ownership-for-new-mexicans-living-with-hiv/aids", "Heinrich, Luj\u00e1n, Leger Fern\u00e1ndez Welcome Over $1 Million to Break Down Barriers to Home Ownership for New Mexicans Living With HIV/AIDS", "2024-10-28", "2024", "2024-10", "Democrat", "Senate", "NM", "Martin Heinrich", "H001046", "www.heinrich.senate.gov", "heinrich", "https://www.heinrich.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases", "scraper", "SANTA FE, N.M. \u2014 U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n (D-N.M.), and U.S. Representative Teresa Leger Fern\u00e1ndez (D-N.M.) welcomed $1,345,637 for the Santa Fe Housing Trust to provide more pathways to first-time home ownership to 2,050 New Mexicans living with HIV/AIDS.\n\nThis grant is funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development\u2019s Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA) Program. The HOPWA program is the only federal program dedicated to the housing needs of people living with HIV/AIDS and their families.\n\nDuring the domestic HIV/AIDS crisis, individuals surviving with HIV/AIDS faced barriers to employment and incurred expensive medical costs. This trend continues and disproportionately impact low-income individuals who are struggling to afford stable housing even before diagnosis and treatment. The financial and health vulnerabilities associated with HIV/AIDS often result in housing instability and homelessness. Research shows individuals living with HIV/AIDS who have a stable place to live have more positive health outcomes and spend less time in hospitals or emergency rooms.\n\n\u201cWe should be making it easier for all New Mexicans to become homeowners. Full stop,\u201dsaid Heinrich. \u201cThis funding will break down barriers for individuals living with HIV/AIDS to become first-time home buyers, ensuring more folks have a safe and secure place to call home. I\u2019ll keep fighting to increase our housing stock, bring down the cost of housing, and ensure all people in our state have a shot at achieving the dream of home ownership.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo New Mexican should ever worry about whether they will have a safe place to sleep at night,\u201d said Luj\u00e1n. \u201cI\u2019m proud to welcome more than $1.3 million in federal funding that will help allow New Mexicans living with HIV/AIDS to secure permanent, stable housing so they can focus on their health. I will continue to fight to expand housing options for all New Mexicans.\u201d\n\n\u201cHome is more than a roof you live under, it provides safety and stability,\u201d said Leger Fern\u00e1ndez. \u201cAs we work to tackle the home affordability crisis across the country, we must use all tools available to help. We know one of the biggest hurdles homebuyers face is saving up for a downpayment. This $1.3 million for the Santa Fe Housing Trust will provide funding for important services like down payment reduction assistance for first-time home buyers living with HIV/AIDS. I\u2019ll continue to fight for funding that helps our communities through legislation like my Home of Your Own Act which would also help first time homebuyers with down payment assistance.\u201d\n\nBackground\n\nHeinrich, Luj\u00e1n, and Leger Fern\u00e1ndez are tireless advocates for lowering housing costs, increasing housing supply, and expanding housing affordability and access for families in New Mexico.\n\nThrough Heinrich\u2019s role as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, particularly through his seat as Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies, Heinrich has worked to deliver millions of dollars to New Mexico for renters and home buyers.\n\nMost recently, Heinrich secured Committee support for the following investments in Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Appropriations:\n\n$3 million for Homewise in the Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Transporation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, which will help moderate-income, first-time homebuyers in New Mexico purchase entry-level homes.\n\n$1.6 billion for rental assistance in the FY25 Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food and Drug Administration Appropriations Bill to ensure Americans living in rural areas have access to safe and affordable housing. Heinrich\u2019s legislation included an increase of up to $1 billion in Single Family Direct Loans to help more low-income families and first-time home buyers get mortgages.\n\n$3.2 billion in the FY25 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill to expand programs providing critical services and housing for veterans and their families.\n\nIn Heinrich\u2019s Fiscal Year 2024 Agriculture Appropriations Bill, he secured $1.6 billion for rental assistance, an increase of $120 million over Fiscal Year 2023. Heinrich\u2019s 2024 Appropriations Bill also provided for a pilot program that decoupled rental assistance from Multifamily Direct Loans, preventing thousands of low-income families from losing rental assistance.\n\nAdditionally, Heinrich secured $1,100,000 through the Fiscal Year 2024 Appropriations process for Santa Fe Habitat for Humanity to develop land into a mixed-income development focused on building 25 to 30 housing units for working families. In total, Heinrich has secured $14,500,000 in Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) for northern New Mexico to address the housing shortage.\n\nIn May, Heinrich, Luj\u00e1n, Leger Fern\u00e1ndez, and the N.M. Congressional Delegation welcomed $11.8 million from the U.S. Department of Housing to support public housing authorities build, renovate, and modernize public housing across New Mexico.\n\nIn February, Heinrich, Luj\u00e1n, Leger Fern\u00e1ndez, and the N.M. Congressional Delegation welcomed more than $16 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development\u2019s (HUD) Continuum of Care program to support New Mexico projects that provide housing assistance and supportive services to people experiencing homelessness.\n\nLuj\u00e1n has also been a champion of expanding access to affordable housing for all New Mexicans. Earlier this year, Luj\u00e1n partnered with Heinrich to push for more funding for Tribal housing programs.\n\nThrough Luj\u00e1n\u2019s work on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Luj\u00e1n has also fought to secure critical support for individuals living with HIV/AIDS.\n\nLuj\u00e1n introduced the bipartisan Ryan White PrEP Availability Act, bipartisan legislation to increase flexibility for Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program clinics, which provide care and treatment for individuals living with HIV/AIDS.\n\nIn the Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) Appropriations package, Luj\u00e1n secured $300,000 to advance the goals of his Oral Health Literacy Act and support the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program.\n\nHeinrich and Luj\u00e1n have also introduced a number of bills to tackle New Mexico\u2019s housing crisis.\n\nLast month, Heinrich introduced the New Homes Tax Credit Act, legislation that would provide tax credits to incentivize new investments and additional resources for single-family home construction and renovations for working families. The bill would address the lack of housing inventory for individuals and families whose incomes are up to 120 percent of the area median income (AMI), particularly including in areas where middle-income families have historically been priced out. In Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and Las Cruces, New Mexico, for example, this added housing inventory would benefit families with annual incomes of up to $103,680, $109,800, and $78,960, respectively.\n\nAt a recent roundtable conversation with local educators in Albuquerque, Heinrich announced his Educator Down Payment Assistance Act, legislation designed to help more educators and school staff in New Mexico purchase a home and keep teachers in the communities where they teach.\n\nIn March, Heinrich co-led the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit Act, legislation to support homeownership among lower- and middle-income Americans by establishing a refundable tax credit worth up to 10 percent of a home\u2019s purchase price \u2013 up to a maximum of $15,000 \u2013 for first-time homebuyers.\n\nHeinrich also cosponsored the Housing for All Act, comprehensive legislation to expand access to affordable housing in New Mexico and supporting those experiencing homelessness. The bill would invest in proven solutions and provide a historic level of federal funding for strategic, existing programs to keep people housed and reduce homelessness, as well as for innovative, locally developed solutions to help vulnerable populations experiencing homelessness.\n\nLast year, Heinrich introduced the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act, which would help build over 14,000 new affordable homes in New Mexico over the next decade, generating over $2.5 billion in wages and business income. The legislation would support the financing of more affordable housing by expanding and strengthening the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, our country\u2019s most successful affordable housing program.\n\nHeinrich also introduced the Delivering Essential Protection, Opportunity, and Security for Tenants (DEPOSIT) Act, which would help an estimated 12,000 New Mexican families access rental housing through the Housing Choice Voucher Program to pay security deposits and get into a rental home. Luj\u00e1n is also a cosponsor of this bill.\n\nIn January, as Chairman of the U.S. Joint Economic Committee (JEC), Heinrich released a report highlighting policy approaches to increasing housing supply in America. Heinrich also chaired a JEC hearing on the report. His full opening statement can be found here.\n\nLuj\u00e1n introduced the bipartisan Homes for Every Local Protector, Educator, and Responder Act of 2023 or the HELPER Act of 2023, legislation that would establish a new home loan program under the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) to make homeownership more accessible to teachers and first responders.\n\nLuj\u00e1n also introduced the bipartisan Reforming Disaster Recovery Act, legislation that would establish a community disaster assistance fund for housing.\n\nAdditionally, Luj\u00e1n introduced bipartisan legislation to expand Native American housing programs that builds on successful Native American housing programs at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) authorized by the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act (NAHASDA).\n\nLuj\u00e1n and Heinrich introduced the bipartisan Native American Rural Homeownership Improvement Act of 2021, legislation that would expand an existing U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) pilot program and deploy loans to eligible Native borrowers.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T21:57:20Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.heinrich.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/heinrich-lujan-leger-fernandez-welcome-over-1-million-to-break-down-barriers-to-home-ownership-for-new-mexicans-living-with-hiv/aids"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5980950556695461, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}