U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), and U.S. Senators Ben Ray Luján and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) recently 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.

 

This grant is funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s 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.

 

This funding will break down barriers for individuals living with HIV/AIDS to become first-time home buyers.”
U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich

 

During 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.

 

“Home is more than a roof you live under, it provides safety and stability,” said Leger Fernández. “As 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’ll 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.”

 

“We should be making it easier for all New Mexicans to become homeowners. Full stop,” said Heinrich. “This 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’ll 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.”

 

“No New Mexican should ever worry about whether they will have a safe place to sleep at night,” said Luján. “I’m 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.”

 

Background

 

Leger Fernández, Heinrich, and Luján are tireless advocates for lowering housing costs, increasing housing supply, and expanding housing affordability and access for families in New Mexico.

 

Through Heinrich’s 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.

 

Most recently, Heinrich secured Committee support for the following investments in Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Appropriations:

 

• $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.
• $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’s 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.
• $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.

In May, Leger Fernández, Heinrich, Luján, 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.

 

In February,  Leger Fernández, Heinrich, Luján, and the N.M. Congressional Delegation welcomed more than $16 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Continuum of Care program to support New Mexico projects that provide housing assistance and supportive services to people experiencing homelessness.

 

In Heinrich’s Fiscal Year 2024 Agriculture Appropriations Bill, he secured $1.6 billion for rental assistance, an increase of $120 million over Fiscal Year 2023. Heinrich’s 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.

 

Additionally, 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.

 

Luján has also been a champion of expanding access to affordable housing for all New Mexicans. Earlier this year, Luján partnered with Heinrich to push for more funding for Tribal housing programs.

 

Through Luján’s work on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Luján has also fought to secure critical support for individuals living with HIV/AIDS.

 

Luján 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.

 

In the Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) Appropriations package, Luján secured $300,000 to advance the goals of his Oral Health Literacy Act and support the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program.

 

Heinrich and Luján have also introduced a number of bills to tackle New Mexico’s housing crisis.

 

Last 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.

 

At 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.

 

In 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’s purchase price – up to a maximum of $15,000 – for first-time homebuyers.

 

Heinrich 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.

 

Last 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’s most successful affordable housing program.

 

Heinrich 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. Luján is also a cosponsor of this bill.

 

In 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.

 

.Luján 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.

 

Luján also introduced the bipartisan Reforming Disaster Recovery Act, legislation that would establish a community disaster assistance fund for housing.

 

Additionally, Luján 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).

 

Luján 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.