HUD USER to Help You Break Through Regulatory Barriers

HUD USER is launching a new resource called the Regulatory
Barriers Clearinghouse (RBC). Those of you who have previously
expressed interest in learning more about the regulatory barriers
to affordable housing may have received a similar annoucement
last week as part of our initial RBC outreach effort. Today, we
are expanding our outreach to include other housing researchers,
practictioners, and policymakers. Please read on to learn what
RBC will have to offer, and how you can contribute to this new
Clearinghouse effort by sharing your experiences with regulatory
barriers. If you would like to see this message in Word or PDF
formats, please click on https://www.huduser.gov/portal/rbc/home.html.
Otherwise, the plain-text listserv version follows.


BREAKTHROUGHS

What part of the solution are you?

HUD USER would like your help in developing and enhancing a
new component of our Web-based resource that will help communities
break through the regulatory barriers to affordable housing.
The Regulatory Barriers Clearinghouse, a stand-alone component
of HUD USER, will serve as a source of information on public
policies that adversely affect the availability of affordable
housing, and will seek to identify viable strategies for
overcoming those barriers.

The Clearinghouse will provide a forum for sharing ideas and
solutions from around the country, so that 'what works' in
San Antonio can be applied to similar problems encountered
in Detroit, Albuquerque, Spokane, and your own hometown.
Good ideas tend to build on one another, and that's why
we need you to send us your very best. In return, you and
your organization will receive credit for your contribution,
and your solution may even serve as the basis for an article
in Breakthroughs, the RBC newsletter. Here's how it works.

1. The new Regulatory Barriers Clearinghouse will provide:

- A Web site with a searchable database of local laws,
regulations, policies, plans, and practices that result in
barriers to affordable housing and more importantly, a
corresponding database of activities, strategies,
publications, policies, and practices that help reduce
or remove these barriers and any negative impacts encountered;

- An electronic newsletter that describes successful,
'real world' solutions for overcoming barriers and promoting
the availability of affordable housing;

- A toll-free number staffed by housing professionals
familiar with regulatory barrier issues and Clearinghouse
content; and

- Occasional e-mail updates (through the RBC listserv)
to help keep you informed.

2. What can I do to help build the Web site?

Submit material about your community's experience in
identifying state and local regulatory barriers especially
those you consider exclusionary, duplicative, or otherwise
unnecessary. Better yet, send us the strategies you've
developed for overcoming these barriers. When submitting
recommendations and solutions, please focus on strategies
that have proven effective in overcoming adverse or negative
conditions. Where applicable, address the ways in which your
policies, procedures, and strategies influence the availability
and affordability of housing, taking into account both the
builder/developer and homebuyer perspectives. When identifying
a barrier and not providing a solution, please restrict your
submissions to only those barriers which have proven most
difficult to overcome, and that affect the greatest number of
stakeholders. In either event, please identify your barrier
and/or solution using one of the following categories.

3. What are the categories for submitting recommendations,
strategies, and barrier identifications?

- Administrative Processes & Streamlining
- Building & Housing Codes (including provisions for modular
homes and technological advances)
- Fair Housing and Neighborhood Deconcentration
- Fees and Dedications (including impact fees and permit costs)
- Planning & Growth Restrictions
- Redevelopment/Infill
- Rent Controls
- State and Local Environmental and Historic Preservation
Regulations/Enforcement Process
- Tax Policies
- Zoning, Land Development, Construction and Subdivision
Regulations

*****Please be sure to reference one of the above-named subject
areas at the beginning of each submission.*****

4. How do I submit material?

There are three ways to submit content for the RBC Web site:

-- Send an e-mail to: RBCsubmit@huduser.gov

-- Send hard copies (ideally, accompanied by electronic files
on disk) to:

Regulatory Barriers Clearinghouse
c/o HUDUSER
P.O. Box 23268
Washington D.C. 20026-3268

Fax: 1-202-708-9981

-- Call: 1-800-245-2691, option 4 / TDD: 1-800-927-7589

If you would prefer to be contacted to discuss your strategies
over the phone, please call the number above to speak with a
Regulatory Barriers Clearinghouse representative.

Include your contact information (name, phone number, e-mail
address, and postal address), so that we may contact and
acknowledge our local database partners. We value our
contributors' privacy; your information will not be made
available for use by other parties, and you may request
removal from the listserv at any time.

5. Is there an example of the type of information you're
looking for?

Participants are encouraged to:

1. Provide a brief description of the barrier: 'Fees and
Dedications' category. Heavensville, Texas has a $7000 school
impact fee that impedes development of affordable housing.

2. Describe how you responded to the barrier: Three local
nonprofit groups convinced the city to waive fees that impeded
development of houses and apartments affordable to families
with incomes up to 80 percent of median income. Housing and
Community Development staff drafted a new section to the
development regulations that waived the school fee in 3 ZIP
codes for houses and apartments affordable to families with
incomes up to 80 percent of area median. These ZIP codes
included neighborhoods that the city wanted to revitalize.

3. Copy and paste section of legislation, give Internet
link, or send hard copy of material with applicable section
highlighted: Web site for revised Section 4.31, Heavensville
Development Regulations. http://www.ci.heavensville.tx.us/
ciplanning/rezsub/rezoning/Ordinance/City/pdf/ZoningOrd
City_Chapter12_.pdf

4. In general please be as concise as possible, bearing in mind
that visitors to the RBC site will be searching for information
based on the categories provided. For all submissions, HUD USER
reserves the right to edit, and in some instances, to refuse to
publish content at our sole discretion.

5. Contact information:

Your Name: _______________

Title: ___________________

Organization/Affiliation:________________________________________

Address: ________________________________________________________

E-mail: _______________ Phone Number: _________________________

Organization URL: _______________________________________________
___
|___| I prefer to be contacted by RBC staff only.
|___| I can be contacted by other users of the RBC Web site.
|___| I prefer to be contacted by e-mail.
|___| I prefer to be contacted by phone.

***Your submission is made with the understanding that HUD USER
and the Regulatory Barriers Clearinghouse have your express
permission to publish, in whole or in part, the information
you provide, and that no material or monetary compensation is
anticipated in return.***

As an added bonus, if you respond by July 25, 2002, your next
single order of one hard copy publication from HUD USER will be
free! When placing your next order, simply mention the "RBC
Incentive". After July 15th, you can click on the "RBC
Incentive" offer when placing your order electonically.

HUD USER and the Regulatory Barriers Clearinghouse are
administered by HUD's Office of Policy Development and
Research as part of an ongoing effort to provide useful
information on housing issues and related research topics.

To be notified of the Regulatory Barriers Clearinghouse site
launch and receive occasional updates on RBC activities, please
subscribe to the Clearinghouse listserv. To subscribe, simply
send an e-mail to RBC@huduser.gov and type "Subscribe"
in the subject of your message.

Be a part of the solution! Send us your experiences with
regulatory barriers, and if applicable, your suggestions
for overcoming them. You can also help by forwarding this
message to colleagues who may be interested in participating.
Look for the official site launch in late August, and thanks
for being a part of our on-line community!