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82 Section 8 homes to go solar — Pacific Wind and Solar of Saipan will get $1,359,489 to install solar power systems on Northern Marianas Housing Corporation low-income housing. 82 homes will be equipped with enough commercial-grade solar panels to generate 3 kilowatts of electricity, about 70 percent of the need for each household.

Thank you, Roy [Austin], for that kind introduction – and for the extraordinary work  that you and so many of your colleagues at the White House do to lift up our communities, to inspire our young people and to mobilize change agents like those we’re here to honor today.  It’s a pleasure – and an immense privilege – to join so many passionate advocates, dedicated public servants and devoted law enforcement officers as we recognize 14 truly remarkable civic leaders: our Champions of Change.

U.S. Deputy Secretary of Commerce Bruce Andrews today announced that he will lead a Smart Cities Infrastructure Business Development Mission to India from February 8-12, 2016, with stops in Mumbai, Chennai, and Delhi. The trade mission will help U.S. companies launch or increase their business in India, focusing on technologies, systems and services in the safety and security, intelligent transportation, water, wastewater, and power sectors.

The Building Technologies Office (BTO) has issued a notice of intent to release a funding opportunity focusing on reducing the energy use of commercial and residential buildings. Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers & Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) will fund projects in an Innovations section and a Frontiers section.

The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) today announced the availability of data on mortgage lending transactions at 7,062 U.S. financial institutions covered by the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). Covered institutions include banks, savings associations, credit unions, and mortgage companies. The HMDA data made available today cover 2014 lending activity, and include applications, originations, purchases and sales of loans, denials, and other actions related to applications

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today it has awarded $12.4 million to 18 tribal communities in 13 states to remove and prevent dangerous mold in more than 1,000 homes. This is the largest amount to date awarded by HUD for this purpose. The grants are being made available through HUD’s Indian Community Development Block Grant (ICDBG) program, whichaddresses a wide variety of community development and affordable housing activities.

Delta Air Lines employees from across the country will build or renovate affordable, single family homes in partnership with Habitat for Humanity International. This year’s fall builds will take place in six cities, including Delta’s hubs in Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York City and Seattle as well as in Los Angeles, a key international gateway for the airline. More than 2,400 Delta employees will participate in the projects, which began Sept. 8 and continue through Nov. 7.

As part of the Obama Administration’s effort to prevent and effectively end homelessness, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today that it will offer $1.9 billion for fiscal year 2015 to support existing and new homelessness programs. Funded through HUD’s Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Program Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA), this notice will further incentivize local applicants to pursue permanent housing using a Housing First approach to target their resources to proven strategies.

“The Alliance is proud to co-host today’s historic Accelerate Energy Productivity 2030 Summit, where Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz is unveiling Accelerate Energy Productivity 2030: A Strategic Roadmap for American Energy Innovation, Economic Growth, and Competitiveness (Roadmap). This is an important national resource that points the way to a doubling of U.S. energy productivity by 2030.

Last month, U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez met a young Camden man named Donny during a visit to New Jersey to tour the facilities of YouthBuild Camden. Before YouthBuild, Donny felt he was on the wrong path and headed toward a life on the streets.

A new issue brief from the Center for American Progress highlights how the abundance of wind energy offshore of the Atlantic coast offers East Coast states an immense opportunity to help achieve their 2030 Clean Power Plan goals, expand their energy supplies, and spur sustainable economic development.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Census Bureau jointly announced the following new residential construction statistics for August 2015. Privately owned housing units authorized by building permits in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,170,000. This is 3.5 percent (±1.4%) above the revised July rate of 1,130,000, and is 12.5 percent (±1.9%) above the August 2014 estimate of 1,040,000.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today recognized projects in three communities as winners of the 2015 National Award for Smart Growth Achievement. Winners include a new public park on a formerly contaminated site along the Passaic River in Newark, N.J. and new mixed-use developments that are spurring investment and revitalization in Jackson, Tenn. and Hamilton, OH.

Consumers Energy is supporting a Michigan-first approach that keeps costs competitive for customers, announcing an agreement today to purchase renewable energy from a new 100-megawatt wind farm to be built in Michigan’s Thumb.

The green building sector is outpacing overall construction growth in the U.S. and will account for more than 2.3 million American jobs this year, according to a new U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) study from Booz Allen Hamilton (NYSE:BAH).

The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that in 2014, there was no statistically significant change from 2013 in either real median household income or the official poverty rate. At the same time, the percentage of people without health insurance coverage declined. Unless otherwise noted, the following results for the nation were compiled from information collected in the 2015 Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today decided that HUD will not force thousands of New York and New Jersey homeowners to repay federal disaster recovery funds following a decision by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to increase flood insurance claim payments to families it initially underpaid following Hurricane Sandy.

President Obama and Vice President Biden are committed to promoting smart, simple, low-cost technologies to help America transition to cleaner and more distributed energy sources, help households save on their energy bills, and to address climate change. That is why today, the Administration is announcing more than $120 million to scale up clean energy in 24 states across the country.

Under a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority (PRASA) has agreed to make major upgrades, improve inspections and cleaning of existing facilities within the Puerto Nuevo system and continue improvements to its systems island-wide. The Puerto Nuevo sewer system serves the municipalities of San Juan, Trujillo Alto, and portions of Bayamón, Guaynabo and Carolina.