[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 124 (Wednesday, September 10, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H8091-H8094]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RESTORING OPERATION OF THE NATIVE AMERICAN VETERAN HOUSING LOAN PROGRAM
DURING FISCAL YEAR 2003 TO SCOPE IN EFFECT ON SEPTEMBER 30, 2002
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 2595) to restore the operation of the Native
American Veteran Housing Loan Program during fiscal year 2003 to the
scope of that program as in effect on September 30, 2002.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 2595
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. OPERATION OF NATIVE AMERICAN VETERAN HOUSING LOAN
PROGRAM.
(a) Restoration for Fiscal Year 2003 to Fiscal Year 2002
Level.--In carrying out the pilot program provided by
subchapter V of chapter 37 of title 38, United States Code,
under which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs is authorized
to make direct housing loans to Native American veterans, the
Secretary shall during fiscal year 2003 carry out that
program without regard to the proviso under the heading
``Native American Veteran Housing Loan Program Account'' in
title I of the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing
and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies
Appropriations Act, 2003 (division K of Public Law 108-7; 117
Stat. 476), and such proviso shall be treated as being of no
force or effect.
(b) Savings Provision.--Any action taken by the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs before the enactment of this Act that is
inconsistent with the proviso referred to in subsection (a)
is hereby ratified with respect to such inconsistency.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith).
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, this legislation would restore the operation of the
Native American Veteran Housing Loan Program during the current fiscal
year to the scope of that program as it was in effect on September 30,
2002.
The Native American Veteran Home Loan Program was established in 1992
as a 5-year pilot program, and Congress has extended it twice, most
recently through 2005. This program is intended to assist eligible
veterans living on trust or equivalent lands to secure
[[Page H8092]]
loans at market rates to purchase, build or to renovate homes. VA has
made over 300 home loans under this program. The Department of Veterans
Affairs has stopped making loans under the Native American direct loan
program because of a limitation contained in the 2003 Appropriations
Act, which capped the amount of loans that can be made under this
program to $5 million. This limitation was requested by the
administration with the assumption that the limit would not be
breached. VA advised us as of June 11 in a letter that it has already
exceeded that limit.
Mr. Speaker, 47 loans have already been made during the fiscal year,
many of them refinancing loans. The VA committee has been advised that
construction of a number of homes has been suspended directly
attributable to the imposition of this moratorium. Pending applications
are also on hold. I see no reason, in effect, why our Native American
veterans should lose access to home loans in this way. We should
celebrate their success, not put an artificial cap on it, especially at
a time when refinancing is a way to save veterans thousands of dollars
each and every year. We need to end this moratorium as soon as
possible, and that is the purpose of this legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution. This will
correct the terrible error that is depriving Native American veterans
access to home loans under the Native Americans Veterans Housing
Program.
While the necessary funding for this loan program has already been
appropriated, the administration requested a cap of $5 million on the
loans of fiscal year 2003. By the time that fiscal year 2003
appropriations bill was signed, the cap had already been exceeded. Some
Native Americans in Hawaii have partially built their homes but now are
unable to complete that construction. This is no way to treat the brave
Americans who fought for our country. This is a mistake that must be
corrected now. Mr. Speaker, this bill would simply remove the existing
cap on expenditures under this program. No additional funding is needed
to restore the program to its original intent. I urge all Members to
support this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Renzi), a member of the
Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Mr. RENZI. Mr. Speaker, I am privileged to represent more Native
Americans than any other congressman. Recently my good friend, the
gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Udall), and I visited the Navajo Nation,
the homeland of the Code Talkers, a distinct group of individuals that
made significant contributions to the security of our Nation in World
War II.
It is deplorable to visit the Navajo Nation and see the conditions of
their children, of their families, living in dilapidated housing.
Therefore, Congress enacted legislation to establish a program to
address this difficulty. What makes it harder is that Native Americans
live on sovereign land and the ability to secure collateral makes it
harder for loans to be made.
The program that was established by Congress to address this issue is
scheduled to conclude at the end of this fiscal year. However, because
we set a cap limiting the number of loans under this program, the
Department of Veterans Affairs exceeded the limit earlier this year.
H.R. 2595 would lift the caps and allow the Department to continue to
process the backlog of new loan applications.
I am proud to be a cosponsor of H.R. 2595 and believe the program
provides equal opportunity to all veterans, especially Native
Americans, to become homeowners.
In October 2000 a joint study of the Department of Housing and Urban
Development and the Department of Treasury found that ownership among
Native Americans is among the lowest in the country at just 33 percent.
We must hold true and honor our commitment to those who served the
Nation and help Native American veterans enjoy the security of
homeownership. This program has been successful in making homeownership
a reality for Native American Indian veterans. For those who bravely
fought to sustain this prosperous Nation, we should lift the barriers
they face in homeownership.
I urge my colleagues to vote favorably in favor of H.R. 2595.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New
Mexico (Mr. Udall).
Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, as an original cosponsor of
this bill, I rise today to offer my strong support for the restoration
of the Native American housing loan program. In the past, this program
has benefited many of my constituents. Restoring it today will ensure
that many more will benefit in the future.
Traditionally, veterans living on tribal land, including allotted
land, were not eligible for the VA home loan guarantees. However, this
program has allowed many Native American veterans who might otherwise
have been unable to obtain suitable housing or acquire direct home
loans to do just that.
In the 107th Congress, I introduced a bill to extend this program
through fiscal year 2005. That bill was included in a bill that became
Public Law 107-103. Language in the omnibus appropriations bill passed
earlier this year caps the program at $5 million. The loans of many
Native American veterans have been cut off. As I speak, there are homes
that were begun under this program that remain half constructed. All
over the Nation, Native American veterans trying to refinance their
homes cannot do so because of this provision.
Additionally, those veterans who have had their loans approved for
construction cannot get the money they were promised. By restoring this
program, we are providing an opportunity for Native American veterans
with existing loans, as well as additional deserving Native American
veterans to get home loans.
Poverty, lack of economic opportunity, and a shortage of financing
for decent affordable housing have created housing conditions on Native
American lands that may only be described as deplorable.
{time} 1030
Almost one in three Native Americans living on a reservation is poor.
Many Native Americans have honorably served our country in the Armed
Forces. In fact, historically Native Americans have the highest record
of service per capita of any ethnic group. Let us continue to help them
by restoring this much-needed program.
In closing, I would like to thank Chairman Smith, Ranking Member
Evans, and the staff of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs for their
speedy work on this bill. This is an important piece of legislation. I
urge my colleagues to support it.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Hawaii (Mr. Case).
(Mr. CASE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. CASE. Mr. Speaker, amidst all of the disagreement and debate on
this floor over things like war and deficits, this is a good-news
story. I want to start some decades ago recognizing my political
mentor, a former Member of this Chamber, my predecessor, Spark
Matsunaga, a veteran himself, who went back and tried to determine
whether the veterans home loan program, a successful program, was
working for Native American veterans living on tribal or trust
territory lands. The answer was a resounding ``no.'' The reason was
because those lands contained restraints on alienation that are not
applicable to other lands. So, therefore, conventional mortgage
practices were not working. My predecessor and my current Senator,
Daniel Akaka, took up the cause and initiated the legislation which we
are now addressing to provide for this program to be applied on trust
territory lands, the lands of the indigenous peoples of our country,
whether they be in Alaska, in North America or Hawaii or the Pacific
Islands.
A very successful program arose, so successful that in the Pacific,
in 300 loans granted under this program over the last 10 years, there
has been one delinquency out of 300 programs. Three hundred programs,
100 paid in full, 200
[[Page H8093]]
being paid in full, one delinquency, a fantastic program that has
accomplished its purpose. This is good news. This is good news because
we made a mistake and we are coming back to correct it and we all know
it. The administration deserves credit for this, the ranking member
deserves credit, the Chair deserves credit, the appropriations
committee deserves credit. What we are going to do is to take a program
that has been successful and continue it. By the way, when you score
this program, we are always talking about money, this program, if this
bill goes through, will return $1 million to the U.S. Treasury. That is
how successful this is. We are not spending money; we are generating
money from this program because of the low delinquency rates.
I thank everybody involved. I commend this bill to the Members and
urge its expeditious passage.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from
American Samoa (Mr. Faleomavaega).
(Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA asked and was given permission to revise and extend
his remarks.)
Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I certainly want to thank the
distinguished chairman of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs from New
Jersey and our senior ranking member from Illinois for their leadership
and for their sensitivity in bringing this legislation to the floor for
consideration.
Mr. Speaker, as an original cosponsor of the original legislation
that was offered 10 years ago, I think it is time that we no longer
should call this legislation a pilot program. It has matured. I
certainly want to urge my colleagues that we should increase not only
the authorization as well as the funding levels for this important
program.
I rise today in support of H.R. 2595, a bill to restore the operation
of the Native American Veteran Housing Loan Program for fiscal year
2003. This program permits the Department of Veterans Affairs to
provide direct home loans to Native American veterans who live not only
on tribal lands but also on homestead lands and communal lands.
Eligible native veterans can then use direct loan funding to purchase,
construct or improve a home on Native American trust land. These loans
may also be used simultaneously to purchase and improve a home or to
refinance another VA direct loan.
This pilot program extends to Native Americans, native Hawaiians, and
also to my constituents in American Samoa. As a result, this program
has been crucial to providing American Samoan veterans the opportunity
to build and own their own homes, an opportunity that would not
otherwise be available to them. VA's annual report to Congress for
fiscal year 2002 reports that over 62 loans have been closed; but for
the 10-year period, hundreds of loans have been approved because of
this program.
As I explained earlier, Mr. Speaker, for the benefit of my colleagues
so we can better appreciate this unique home loan program for our
native veterans, the thousands of American Indian veterans who live in
reservations, when they returned to their homes, they could not obtain
a commercial home loan as you would someone who lived in a commercially
owned property, a fee simple, living in reservations. The same is true
with our native Hawaiian veterans who live in what is known as
``homestead lands,'' in the same situation where commercial lending
institutions would not lend us money to build homes under a veterans
program. The same is also true with my own veterans who live on
communal lands. This is a unique program. I am very, very happy that we
are able to continue the funding levels but also more importantly we
need to make sure that this program continues.
Mr. Speaker, the Native American Veteran Housing Loan Program has
been successful in providing our native veterans the opportunity to
build and own their own homes. It provides our native veterans the
ability to continue to live in their own lands, to contribute to their
communities, and to build a legacy to leave their families. This
program needs increased authorization and funding in the years to come.
I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Guam (Mr. Bordallo).
(Mr. BORDALLO asked and was given permission to revise and extend her
remarks.)
Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, when Congress authorized the Native
American home loan bill in 1993, it recognized the poverty and the
homelessness of veterans from the Pacific Islands. It recognized that
those veterans needed special assistance to access the necessary
financing to put a roof over their heads. Ten years later, the funding
has expired, but the challenge remains the same.
Mr. Speaker, I understand that when the Department of Veterans
Affairs shut down the lending program, they were on the verge of
approving a loan to a Guam applicant. So I am pleased to join with my
colleagues, Chairman Smith and Ranking Member Evans, in providing the
funding authorization necessary to continue the program.
A noteworthy aspect of the Native American home loan bill is that it
withholds a loan fee from applicants with a service-connected
disability. Each time I meet with veterans in Guam and hear their
descriptions of living with the effects of Agent Orange or a post-
traumatic stress disorder, I am reminded that we have yet to repay the
service that these men and women have given to our Nation. We need to
provide adequate veterans benefits and services not just near where a
military base or a VA processing center is but where the veterans are,
places like the tribal lands of Colorado and the Chamorro land trust
properties of Guam.
I hope that our action here today will bring attention to the good
work of the program and increase the knowledge of the program amongst
Native American communities.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
I just want to thank the gentleman from Illinois for his leadership
on this and for working so cooperatively with us. I also thank the
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Renzi), the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr.
Udall), the gentleman from Hawaii (Mr. Abercrombie), the gentleman from
Hawaii (Mr. Case), the gentlewoman from Guam (Mr. Bordallo), the
gentleman from Maine (Mr. Michaud), and the gentleman from American
Samoa (Mr. Faleomavaega) for his cosponsorship of this legislation. I
appreciate it very much and urge the body to adopt it.
Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Chairman Chris
Smith and Ranking Member Lane Evans for their support and diligent work
regarding Native American issues. Today I rise in support of H.R. 2595,
a bill to restore the operation of the Native American Veteran Housing
Loan Program during Fiscal Year 2003. This pilot program permits the
Department of Veterans Affairs to provide direct home loans to Native
American veterans who live on tribal lands. Eligible native veterans
can use direct loan funding to purchase, construct, or improve a home
on Native American trust land. These loans may also be used to
simultaneously purchase and improve a home or to refinance another VA
direct loan.
This pilot program extends to Native Americans, Native Hawaiians and
to my constituents in American Samoa. For the benefit of my colleagues
and so that we can better appreciate this unique home loan program, I
want to explain that most native veterans living on communal or tribal
lands. This is true for American Indian veterans who live on
reservation lands. The same is true of our Native Hawaiian veterans who
live on what is known in Hawaii as Homestead lands. The same is also
true with American Samoan veterans who live on communal lands which
cannot be sold as commercial or as fee simple property.
Given the unique status of communal lands, thousands of native
veterans have been denied loans by our commercial lending institutions
and banks. However, with the creation of this pilot program, many of
our native veterans are able to build and own their own homes and the
VA reported that in 2002 it had closed on a total of 289 loans under
the terms of this pilot program.
Recently, Public Law 108-7, Consolidated Appropriations Resolution,
placed a cap of $5 million on the amount of loans that could be
approved under the program. But, at the time this law was enacted, VA
had already exceeded this cap. As a result, VA is unable to make new
loans for the remainder of the fiscal year. Because of this new cap,
veterans are unable to complete construction on homes already in
progress. This is unfair to our native veterans and it is imperative
that Congress remedy this situation. H.R. 2595 will accomplish this.
H.R.
[[Page H8094]]
2595 will reinstate the program retroactively and validate the loans
which have already been made.
The Native American Veteran Housing Loan Program has been successful
in providing our native veterans the opportunity to build and own their
own homes. It provides our native veterans the ability to continue to
live on their native lands, to contribute to their communities, and to
build a legacy for their families. It is the responsibility of Congress
to reinstate this important program, to recognize the contributions
made by our native veterans to our Nation and to afford them the
opportunity to participate and realize the American dream of owning
their own homes.
This program needs increased authorization and funding in the years
to come and I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
Mr. ABERCROMBIE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bill
to reinstate the Native American Veteran Housing Loan program.
I would like to thank the Chairman of the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, Mr. Smith, the Ranking Member, Mr. Evans, and the staff of the
Committee on Veterans' Affairs for their work in crafting this much-
needed remedy to the present situation. I would also like to thank
Senator Akaka for his leadership over the years on this issue. He and
his staff have been tireless in their efforts to rectify this problem
since it arose in May.
In 1992, the Native American Veterans Home Loan Equity Act was
enacted to establish and implement a pilot program to make direct
housing loans to aid Native American (Indian, Alaska or Hawaii native,
or Pacific Islander) veterans in purchasing, constructing, or
improving, dwellings on trust land. Almost 11 years later, the VA has
closed several hundred loans, and the program is a resounding success.
Native Hawaiian veterans have greatly benefited from the loan
program. Through the end of Fiscal Year 2002, 300 loans were closed
throughout the Pacific. Of the 300 loans, about 215 were new
construction loans, with the balance consisting of Interest Rate
Reduction Loans. Although Hawaii has the highest loan volume, American
Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam have
significant levels of activity. About 100 of the 300 loans have been
paid in full and the other 200 are active and performing. Only one loan
termination has occurred to date since 1992.
This year's dramatic increase in use of the program mirrors the
national upswing in financing new construction and refinancing existing
loans. Home ownership has long been a hallmark of financial growth and
community stability, and it's encouraging to see so many vets in my own
state enjoying this benefit. However, I deeply regret that more of our
Native American veterans were unable to take advantage of the 40-year
historic low financing rates available a mere two and a half months
ago. The untimely halt to this past May cut off deserving veterans from
this financial tool. Mr. Speaker, I hope that we can do better in the
future to correct such problems before they cause inadvertent harm.
In the end, this measure is about equity. The Native American
Veterans Direct Loan program exists to afford our Native American,
Native Hawaiian, Alaskan Native, and Pacific Islander veterans on trust
lands the same benefits available to the rest of our veterans
community. We need to sustain this program--it's a matter of fairness.
I urge my colleagues to support this measure.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Shaw). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2595.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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