(The Center Square) — U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, says proposed federal law will make it more straightforward for first responders and teachers to buy properties within the communities the place they paintings.
Ossoff is co-sponsoring the “Homes for Every Local Protector, Educator, and Responder (HELPER) Act of 2023” with U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida.
It would determine a brand new Federal Housing Administration home mortgage program for first responders and teachers who’re first-time homebuyers to safe a down payment-free loan. Ossoff stated loan underwriters would nonetheless behavior due diligence and a chance evaluation to make sure that the mortgage is sound.
“This is all about ensuring that those public servants — teachers, first responders, law enforcement — can live in the communities they serve,” Ossoff stated throughout a press convention at Roswell’s Fire Station 24.
“The challenge of home affordability makes it difficult for public servants to afford homes in the communities where they work,” Ossoff added. “And it can make it difficult for the chiefs here and the mayor to recruit and retain the talented personnel that we want in our fire departments, in our police departments, in our sheriff’s offices, in our schools.”
The law is modeled after a identical program for veterans.
During the Monday press convention, Ossoff may just now not in particular say how a lot this system would possibly price taxpayers and stated his personnel would practice up with an in depth fiscal research. An Ossoff spokeswoman may just now not say when the information may well be to be had.
However, the law authorizes $660,000 for fiscal 2024 and $160,000 for each and every fiscal yr from 2025 via 2030. The program would have to be reauthorized after 5 years.
“In this country, the number one challenge facing police departments is the hiring, retention and recruitment of high-quality police officers,” Roswell Chief of Police James Conroy stated. “This bipartisan legislation is going to go a long way into investing into those future police officers so they can live in or around the communities that they serve and protect.”
“It’s important that we be a part of our communities,” Conroy added. “And it’s important that they have affordable housing, and they’re able to live close to or within the communities that they work.”
According to Ossoff’s place of work, mentioning Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers, Georgia has kind of 21,000 cops, 11,000 teachers, 11,000 firefighters and 5,600 EMS/EMTs and paramedics.
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