WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. – The Navajo Housing Authority (NHA) is announcing a public hearing being hosted by U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D-AZ) on Saturday, April 10. The hearing is scheduled to start at 11:30 a.m. and is being held at the Navajo Nation Museum in Window Rock, Ariz.
Accompanying Kirkpatrick is Chairwoman Maxine Waters of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity.
The hearing is being held to receive testimonies and questions regarding housing challenges facing Indian country. The hearing is open to the public; however witnesses at the hearing are by invitation only and will include representatives of surrounding tribes and veteran’s service organizations, as well as officials from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
A major topic of the hearing will be Congresswoman Kirkpatrick’s legislation to help disabled Native American veterans qualify for housing assistance. In Kirkpatrick’s continuing efforts to work on behalf of Native American veterans, she recently introduced the Indian Veterans Housing Opportunity Act of 2009 (H.R.3553) on Sep. 24, 2009 that was originated by the NHA.
Specifically, the Act calls for new language additions in Paragraph (9) of section 4 of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act (NAHASDA) (25 U.S.C. 4103(9)) to include; “Any amounts received by any member of the family as disability compensation under chapter 11 of title 38, United States Code, or dependency and indemnity compensation under chapter 13 of such title.’’
The existing Act has resulted in many disabled Native American veterans, their families, and their survivors being denied housing assistance due to their veteran's and survivor benefits being included as income, which may exceed the allowable income thresholds to receive assistance.
One federal agency, the Internal Revenue Service, under the U.S. Department of Treasury, excludes disability payments from income and therefore such income should be treated likewise under NAHASDA in order to determine eligibility for housing assistance states Aneva J. Yazzie CEO of NHA.
After the event, Rep. Kirkpatrick and Chairwoman Waters will tour newly-constructed NHA homes in Fort Defiance.
