Persistent Poverty in America: Addressing Chronic Disinvestment in Colonias, the... (EventID=115191)

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Connect with the House Financial Services Committee Get the latest news: https://democrats-financialservices.house.gov/ Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HouseFinancialCmte Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/FSCDems ___________________________________ On Thursday, November 15, 2022, at 10:00 a.m. (ET) Housing, Community Development and Insurance Subcommittee Chairman Cleaver and Ranking Member Hill will host a hybrid hearing entitled, “Persistent Poverty in America: Addressing Chronic Disinvestment in Colonias, the Southern Black Belt, and the U.S. Territories." ___________________________________ Witnesses for this one-panel hearing will be: • Amber Arriaga-Salinas, Assistant Executive Director, Proyecto Azteca • Yarimar Bonilla, Director, Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College • Kiyadh Burt, Vice President of Policy & Advocacy and Interim Director, HOPE Policy Institute • Lance George, Director of Research and Information, Housing Assistance Council • Chris Potterpin, President of Development, PK Companies ___________________________________ Background This hearing will focus on persistent poverty in the colonias, the Southern Black Belt region (Black Belt), and the U.S. territories, and the housing and community development needs and challenges in these communities, which are predominantly rural. The colonias are defined by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and US Department of Agriculture (USDA) as communities located within the 150-mile region along the U.S.-Mexico border that “lack adequate water, sewer, or decent housing, or a combination of all three.” The Black Belt encompasses predominately Black rural communities in the area extending between Arkansas and North Carolina. Rural counties represent a population of approximately 46.1 million people, with an overall poverty rate of 15.4% compared to 10.5% nationwide. Rural communities often struggle with a lack of safe, decent, and affordable housing, homelessness, and community development challenges exacerbated by diminishing federal and private investments. A subset of these communities also experience “persistent poverty,” which refers to counties with poverty rates over 20% or more for three consecutive decades. Rural counties experiencing persistent poverty, which represent a population of 5 million people, are often geographically concentrated. For example, each of the 78 municipios in Puerto Rico (county equivalents) are classified as having persistent poverty.6 Not including Puerto Rico, the Housing Assistance Council (HAC) estimates that there are 377 persistently poor counties, with 81% living in nonmetropolitan areas, representing over 1.6 million people. The latest Census data show that there has been an increase in racial and ethnic diversity in rural communities over the last several years. As of 2020, people of color made up 24% of the rural population in the United States, a 3.5% increase from 2010 to 2020.9 The Black population makes up the largest nonWhite demographic in rural areas. However, rural Indigenous and Latinx populations have seen the most population growth among people of color in rural communities from 2010 to 2020. USDA found that half of the Black and Indigenous rural poor population lives in high and persistent poverty counties compared to 20% of poor Latinx and 12% percent of poor White households in these same counties. Housing and Community Development Needs Colonias Based on HUD and USDA’s definition of colonias, they are located in the states of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, with Texas having the highest percentage of colonias. However, the definition of colonias differs across the federal, state, and local level and some have argued that HUD and USDA’s definition deserves revisiting as some communities that experience similar challenges are located outside the 150-mile border region and therefore do not qualify for certain assistance targeted for colonias. For example, jurisdictions that participate in HUD’s Community Development Block Grant program (CDBG) must set aside a share of CDBG funds, not to exceed 10%, for colonia investments. The border region, including colonias, is predominately Latinx today and home to many families with mixed immigration statuses. In Texas, for example, Latinx people represent 96% of colonia residents while 73.1% of all residents are U.S. citizens. Throughout the colonias region, more than 28% of households are experiencing persistent poverty. Colonias are often located in unincorporated areas, which means that they are not governed by any local municipal government. The lack of municipal government infrastructure creates unique challenges for many colonias that are struggling with severe housing and community development needs. Overall, the colonias struggle with an aging and severely substandard housing.... Hearing page: https://financialservices.house.gov/events/eventsingle.aspx?EventID=409879