Section 4 Capacity Building for Community Development and Affordable Housing

The Section 4 program builds the capacity of Community Development Corporations (CDCs) and Community Housing Development Organizations (CHDOs) to serve their communities and low- and moderate-income families with community development and affordable housing activities.

Through funding of national intermediaries, the Section 4 Capacity Building program (Section 4) enhances the capacity and ability of community development corporations (CDCs) and community housing development organizations (CHDOs) to carry out affordable housing and community development activities that benefit low- and moderate-income families and persons. By law, there are only three eligible applicants for the Section 4 program. The competition is limited to the organizations identified in Section 4 of the HUD Demonstration Act of 1993 (Pub.L. 103-120, 107 Stat. 1148, 42 U.S.C. 9816 note), as amended. These organizations are: 1. Enterprise Community Partners, Inc. (formerly The Enterprise Foundation), 11000 Broken Land Parkway, Suite 700, Columbia, MD 21044; 2. the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), 501 Seventh Avenue, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10018; and 3. Habitat for Humanity International, 121 Habitat Street, Americus, GA 31709. Affiliates and local offices of these organizations and their community partners are not eligible to compete either directly or independently for capacity building grants under this notice, but rather may seek funding from the above organizations.

By law, there are only three eligible applicants for the Section 4 program. The competition is limited to the organizations identified in Section 4 of the HUD Demonstration Act of 1993 (Pub.L. 103-120, 107 Stat. 1148, 42 U.S.C. 9816 note), as amended. These organizations are: 1. Enterprise Community Partners, Inc. (formerly The Enterprise Foundation); 2. the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), and 3. Habitat for Humanity International. Specifically, the only applicants eligible for this competition are the three organizations located at the following addresses: 1. Enterprise Community Partners, Inc., 11000 Broken Land Parkway, Suite 700, Columbia, MD 21044. 2. Local Initiatives Support Corporation, 501 Seventh Avenue, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10018 3. Habitat for Humanity International, 121 Habitat Street, Americus, GA 31709. Affiliates and local offices of these organizations and their community partners are not eligible to compete either directly or independently for capacity building grants under this notice, but rather may seek funding from the above organizations

Community Development Corporations (CDCs) and Community Housing Development Organizations (CHDOs) are the only eligible beneficiaries.

After selection for funding but prior to award, applicants must submit financial and administrative information and certifications to comply with applicable requirements. Applicants also must submit a certification from an Independent Public Accountant or the cognizant government auditor, stating that the applicant's financial management system meets prescribed standards for fund control and accountability.

Eligible Activities and Priorities. Funds may be used to provide the following services: 1. Training, education, support, and advice to enhance the technical and administrative capabilities of CDCs and CHDOs. This includes building the capacity of CDCs and CHDOs to: o Participate in consolidated planning, fair housing planning and Continuum of Care homeless assistance efforts that help ensure community-wide participation in assessing area needs; o Consult broadly within the community; o Cooperatively plan for the use of available resources in a comprehensive and holistic manner; and o Assist in evaluating performance under these community efforts and in linking plans with neighboring communities in order to foster regional planning. 2. Loans, pass-through grants, development assistance, predevelopment assistance, or other financial assistance to CDCs and CHDOs to carry out community development and affordable housing activities that benefit low-income or low- and moderate-income families and persons, including the acquisition, construction, or rehabilitation of housing for low-income or low- and moderate-income families and persons, and community and economic development activities that create jobs for low-income persons. 3. Such other activities as may be determined by the grantees in consultation with the Secretary or his or her designee. Currently only Section 4 related Administration activities are eligible under this category.

The performance period for the capacity building grants is four years (48 months). Funds must be expended within four years (48 months) of the grant start date.

The annual publication of HUD's Capacity Building for Community Development and Affordable Housing (Section 4) NOFA details the submission requirements. Applications may be submitted in response to the annual publication of the Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for the Capacity Building for Community Development and Affordable Housing (Section 4) Program on Grants.gov.

Applications are reviewed according to the Threshold Requirements and Rating Factor requirements set forth in the Section 4 Capacity Building for Community Development and Affordable Housing Program NOFA. Applicants are assessed for the organizations capacity, understanding of the capacity building needs of eligible beneficiaries, the soundness of their approach in their proposed Capacity Building program, their commitment to leveraging other funding, and their performance evaluation and past performance on previous Section 4 grant awards.

Based upon the requirements published in the General Section and Program Section of the NOFA, respondents are notified of acceptance or rejection. Upon selection, the applicant and HUD shall negotiate and execute a grant agreement.