Pittsfield Affordable Housing Signs Nondiscrimination Agreement
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Affordable Housing Trust voted to require that grantees of funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Community Initiative program sign an assurance agreement for nondiscrimination.
The agreement states that, as a condition of federal financial assistance, they will comply with national law and policies that prohibit discrimination, including Title IV, Title IX, and titles within the Americans with Disabilities Act, and allow the USDA to access records for a compliance review or complaint investigation.
At the virtual meeting on Wednesday, trust members also ratified Chairman Michael McCarthy's signature on an assurance agreement for themselves.
It indicates that the trust won't spend or allocate this money without making sure it complies with "basically anti-discrimination statutory law," he explained.
"It makes sense, and I thought it would be wise," the chairman said.
The Berkshire Regional Planning Commission intends to seek a total of $500,000 (half from the RDCI program) to provide technical assistance for local affordable housing trusts. Director of Community Development Justine Dodds explained that the trust was asked to sign the assurance agreement.
"It doesn't mean we will receive funding, but we wanted to be in a position that if this grant were to be awarded, we could participate," she said.
If awarded, the grant provides technical assistance to local affordable housing trusts, planning boards, and town administrators on housing development initiatives.
Dodds noted that the agreement is an easy thing to say "yes" to.
The assurance agreement cites six specific policies that grantees must follow: Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; The Age Discrimination Act of 1975; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act; and Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act,.
"To ensure compliance with Title VI, you must take reasonable steps to ensure that [limited English proficiency] persons have meaningful access to your programs," it reads.
"… Meaningful access may entail providing language assistance services, including oral and written translation, where necessary."
In other news, the trust has $365,000 in Community Preservation Act funding to allocate to projects that create affordable housing opportunities. Letters of interest will be accepted through the end of the month.
Applicants will go through an eligibility review before funding applications are considered. There are currently two applications, and the trust will review any other applications for eligibility at its next meeting.
Tags: federal grants, rural development, USDA,
