[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 26 (Thursday, March 9, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E274-E275]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HOMEOWNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES FOR UNIFORMED SERVICES AND EDUCATORS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN J. LaFALCE

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 9, 2000

  Mr. LaFALCE. Mr. Speaker, today, along with a number of my 
colleagues, I will be introducing the ``Homeownership Opportunities for 
Uniformed Services and Educators Act,'' also known as the HOUSE Act.
  This legislation reinvests a small portion of the profits earned each 
year by the Federal

[[Page E275]]

Housing Administration (FHA) single family Mutual Mortgage Insurance 
Fund (MMIF) in low down payment mortgages, to help localities with the 
recruitment and retention of qualified K-12 teachers, policemen and 
firemen, and to make it easier for these public servants to buy a home. 
This bill is supported by the National Education Association, the 
American Federation of Teachers, the American Association of School 
Administrators, and the Fraternal Order of Police.
  Specifically, the HOUSE Act authorizes 1% down FHA mortgage loans for 
qualified teachers, policemen, and firemen, and defers the 2.25% up-
front FHA premium normally charged for such loans until the loan is 
repaid. The effect of this is dramatic. A typical borrower buying a 
$130,000 home would see their down payment reduced by $5,000, from 
$6,300 to $1,300.
  In addition, the bill provides an incentive for continued service as 
a teacher, policeman, or fireman, by waiving 20% of the deferred FHA 
premium for each year that a borrower continues to live and work in the 
school district or local jurisdiction that employs them. Thus, after 
five years, the FHA premium would not only be deferred, it would be 
waived altogether.
  To qualify, a teacher must be a full time K-12 teacher, buying a home 
within the school district in which that teacher is employed, or a 
policeman or fireman who is buying a home in the jurisdiction that 
employs them.
  The FHA single family MMIF mortgage fund is strong. This week, FHA 
released audited financial results for fiscal year 1999, which showed a 
$5 billion increase in the fund's capital from the previous year. FHA's 
capital level of over $16 billion is substantially in excess of 
Congressionally required capital standards. The HOUSE bill proposes to 
use a very small portion of these profits to help public servants who 
teach our children and who police our streets to buy a home in the 
community in which they serve. I urge its adoption.

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