[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 167 (Wednesday, December 21, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S14315]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   RECOGNIZING THE NEWARK HUD OFFICE

 Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, it is with great pleasure that 
I rise today to pay tribute to the Newark field office of the U.S. 
Department of Housing and Urban Development on the occasion of its 40th 
anniversary in my home State of New Jersey.
  The Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD, administers 
programs that increase homeownership, provide aid for housing for lower 
income people, support community development, and increase access to 
housing free from discrimination.
  For 40 years, the staff of the Newark field office has embraced this 
mission and effectively partnered with faith-based and community 
organizations to help provide housing assistance to the homeless, 
elderly, people with disabilities, and people living with AIDS.
  Today, under the leadership of Diane Johnson, the Newark field office 
is leading the way in helping more low- and moderate-income New 
Jerseyans realize the American dream of becoming homeowners. For 
example, in the city of Trenton, the HUD-designated ``Homeownership 
Zone'' is helping first-time homebuyers and minority families purchase 
homes.
  Since its creation in 1992, the HOPE VI Program has helped transform 
the HUD's approach to housing assistance for the poor. In New Jersey, 
HOPE VI has successfully generated over $1 billion to revitalize 
distressed public housing. This investment has changed the housing 
landscape in towns and cities throughout the State by replacing 
severely distressed public housing projects, occupied exclusively by 
poor families, with redesigned mixed-income housing.
  The Housing Choice Voucher Program has grown into the dominant form 
of federal housing assistance, helping 65,000 low-income families in 
New Jersey afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the private 
market.
  It is with great respect that I extend my warmest congratulations to 
the Newark field office on four decades of success and to Diane Johnson 
who has been a tireless advocate on behalf of HUD's programs and the 
people who benefit from them.

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