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| National CAPACD E-Newsletter June 2007 |
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Contents:
1) National CAPACD Supports Language Access Rights
2) Welcome the American Dream Team Interns Class of 2007.
3) June is National Homeownership Month: Are You Ready to Buy Your First Home?
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1) National CAPACD Supports Language Access Rights in Section 8 Bill
On May 24,
National CAPACD and its allies mobilized to defeat an amendment to HR
1851, the Section 8 Voucher Reform Act (SEVRA) which would limit the
Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) authority to
require recipients of federal funds to translate documents for people
with limited English proficiency (LEP). We especially would like
to thank Orange County Asian Pacific Islander Community Alliance
(OCAPICA) and other member organizations for contacting Congressman
Royce.
The Financial
Services Committee voted down the amendment offered by Representative
Ed Royce (R-CA) by a 34 to 27 vote. This amendment would scale back The
Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Executive Order 13166, which is intended
to make government services more accessible to LEP individuals and
prevent discrimination based on national origin. SEVRA would fix
voucher renewal funding problems, assure voucher holders of the ability
to move with their vouchers, and simplify rent calculations for voucher
holders and project-based and public housing residents.
National CAPACD
is working with a group of civil rights organizations, property
management associations, and homebuilder groups to create an amendment
which would increase HUD capacity to support services to LEP
individuals. This would include creating a clearinghouse for HUD
translated vital documents, a toll-free hotline to provide
interpretation for LEP persons, and a resource center for document best
practices.
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2) Welcome the American Dream Team Interns Class of 2007.
The American Dream Team Internship Program, which
develops new leaders in the fields of housing, community and economic
development, has once again provided the opportunity for five Asian
Pacific American students to intern at local community development
corporations, banks, and other financial institutions throughout the
country.
The interns this year include:
Kathy Xiong, a
recent graduate of the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities where she
majored in General Sociology, is interning with Home Ownership Made
Easy in Culver City, CA. She will have the opportunity to learn
about community land trusts.
Melissa Fong majored in Sociology & Geography at the University of British Columbia. Rassacin Ly
received his degree in Political Science from the University of
Minnesota-Twin Cities. Both are interning with Neighborhood
Housing Services of America in Oakland, CA where they will have the
opportunity to learn about financial management of secondary market
operation and electronic processing of mortgage loans.
James Huang is
majoring in Business Administration at George Washington
University. He is interning with Chase Community Development
Group in New York, NY where he will have the opportunity to learn more
about business and marketing.
Kelly Chang is a
sophomore at Yale University where he is majoring in Economics.
He is interning with Lyons Mortgage Services, Inc. in New York, NY
where he will have the opportunity to learn more about the mortgage and
finance industry.
We are excited that each of the interns are off to a wonderful start
and would like to thank Fannie Mae for their generous contribution to
this program.
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3) June is National Homeownership Month
National CAPACD, along with Freddie Mac CreditSmart Asian, would like
to remind you that June is National Homeownership Month, celebrating
the dream of owning a home that many immigrants share.
Since families often look to move during the summer school break, June
is a prime time for buying a home. To help Asian Americans
understand the steps to homeownership, Freddie Mac has created
“Steps to Homeownership,” one of three guidebooks in their
CreditSmart Asian educational series, available in English, Chinese,
Korean and Vietnamese. Companion guides include, “The
Importance of Good Credit” and “Homeowner Benefits and
Responsibilities.”
“The CreditSmart Asian series is providing valuable culturally
and linguistically appropriate information to many in our
community,” said Lisa Hasegawa, National CAPACD Executive
Director, “The series helps Asian Americans to understand the
home buying process, including credit and income history, and break
through barriers to homeownership.”
National CAPACD will be hosting a workshop on the CreditSmart Asian
curriculum at the Annual National CAPACD Convention on August 22nd
– 24th in Honolulu, Hawaii this year.
CreditSmart Asian
guidebooks are available through National CAPACD, as well as through
the following organizations: Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE), Asian
Real Estate Association of America (AREAA), Boat People SOS, Korean
Churches for Community Development (KCCD), National Congress of
Vietnamese Americans (NCVA), National Asian Pacific Center on Aging
(NAPCA), and National Korean American Service & Education
Consortium, Inc. (NAKASEC).
For a complete set of the
CreditSmart Asian guidebooks, please visit
http://www.freddiemac.com/creditsmart/creditsmart_asian.html or contact
National CAPACD’s TC Duong at (202) 223-2442.
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