Mercy Housing supports the following three Housing and Community Development provisions of the Baucus Tax Extenders Bill (S. 3793) and urges Congress to pass this important, home creating and job saving bill in the 2010 Lame Duck Session.  We ask you to take action with us.  Reach out to your Senators and stress the importance of including these three key provisions this year in tax extender legislation:

1. Extending the Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) 9% exchange program for one year.
2. Funding for the National Housing Trust Fund (NHTF)
3. Extension of New Markets Tax Credits

For every 100 apartments financed by the LIHTC, 116 jobs are created or saved.  Every $1 billion provided to the Trust Fund will support the immediate construction of 10,000 rental homes, creating 15,100 new construction jobs and 3,800 new jobs in ongoing operations.  The New Markets Tax Credit Coalition estimates that some $36 billion in capital has already been invested in low income communities thanks to the credit. Using the Recovery Act standard of 1 job for every $92,000 in financing, that $36 billion investments converts to 391,304 jobs having been created in low income communities.

As the economy continues to flounder and more and more families face the possibility of losing their homes, these three provisions stand to make a difference.  November’s election was about the economy.  We are concerned that if Congress fails to approve S. 3793 before the 112^thCongress starts in January 2011, it will not pass at all. 

Please reach out and remind your senator that he or she is there to create jobs, to save homes and to help rebuild America. Passing the Baucus Tax Extender Bill would be the right first step.

Learn more about supporting Mercy Housing’s advocacy efforts here.