Miscellaneous information submitted to the committee by-Continued National Association of Real Estate Boards-Continued Legislation concerning taxing powers and tax rates, May 21, 1948- For a Nation-wide Exposé of Public Housing, article by Clarke National Association of University Women: Death rate per 100,000 from disease and accidents associated 596 National Federation of Settlements, Inc., New York, N. Y., statement__ Neff, Eleanor, associate secretary, department of Christian social rela- 1085 Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority: Payments made by, to city of Norfolk in connection with Merri- 423 Public Housing Administration: Bond prospectus for sale of series A bonds by Housing Authority-- 354 355 Additional data with respect to the project, the annual contri- 361 Power of the General Accounting Office to examine local housing 369 Summary of payments in lieu of taxes, local contributions and Miscellaneous information submitted to the committee by-Continued Rents achievable for typical private rental housing in compari- Responsibility of local housing authorities to local governments_ Tax exemption of low-rent housing projects in Massachusetts---. Page 268 282 267 Building and Civil Engineering, excerpt taken from document en- The Building Products Institute: American Legion news release of May 5, at Indianapolis, Ind‒‒‒‒ 837 854 868 United States Savings and Loan League, Chicago, Ill., statement----- 1114 Characteristics of home loans reported closed 9 months' period, The committee convened at 10 a. m., Hon. Jesse P. Wolcott, chairman, presiding. Present: Messrs. Wolcott, Gamble, Smith, Talle, McMillen, Cole, Hull, Stratton, Fletcher, Nicholson, Spence, Brown, Monroney, Folger, Riley, Buchanan, and Boggs. The CHAIRMAN. The committee will come to order. We will open hearings this morning on most of the housing bills which have been introduced and referred to this committee, the principal one of which is S. 866. (S. 866 referred to is as follows:) [S. 866, 80th Cong., 2d sess.] AN ACT To establish a national housing objective and the policy to be followed in the attainment thereof, to facilitate sustained progress in the attainment of such objective, and for other purposes Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be cited as the "Housing Act of 1948." DECLARATION OF NATIONAL HOUSING POLICY SEC. 2. The Congress hereby declares that the general welfare and security of the Nation and the health and living standards of its people require a production of residential construction and related community development sufficient to remedy the serious cumulative housing shortage, to eliminate slums and blighted areas, to realize as soon as feasible the goal of a decent home and a suitable living environment for every American family, and to develop and redevelop communities so as to advance the growth and wealth of the Nation. The Congress further declares that such production is necessary to enable the housing industry to make its full contribution toward an economy of maximum employment, production, and purchasing power. The policy to be followed in attaining the national housing objective hereby established shall be: (1) Private enterprise shall be encouraged to serve as large a part of the total need as it can; (2) governmental assistance shall be utilized where feasible to enable private enterprise to serve more of the total need; and (3) governmental aid to clear slums and provide adequate housing for groups with incomes so low that they cannot otherwise be decently housed in new or existing housing shall be extended only to those localities which estimate their own needs and demonstrate that these needs cannot fully be met through reliance solely upon private enterprise and upon local and State revenues, and without such aid. 1 TITLE I-FHA TITLE VI AND TRANSITIONAL PERIOD AMENDMENTS SEC. 101. The National Housing Act, as amended, is hereby amended as follows: TITLE VI AMENDMENTS (a) Section 603 (a) is amended (1) by striking out "$5,350,000,000" and inserting in lieu thereof "$5,950,000,000 except that with the approval of the President such aggregate amount may be increased to not to exceed $6,950,000,000"; (2) by striking out "April 30, 1948" in each place where it appears and inserting in lieu thereof "March 31, 1949"; (3) by striking out the period and adding a comma and the following: "and that, of the total authorization provided in this subsection, not less than $800,000,000 shall be made available for the insurance of mortgages on rental properties under section 608, and not less than $200,000,000 shall be made available for the insurance of mortgages on multifamily dwellings under section 603, on which commitments for insurance are issued subsequent to March 31, 1948." (b) Section 603 (b) (5) is amended by striking out the period at the end thereof and inserting in lieu thereof a colon and the following: "Provided, That the Administrator, with the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury, may prescribe by regulation a higher maximum rate of interest, not exceeding 42 per centum per annum on the amount of the principal obligation outstanding at any time, if he finds that the mortgage market demands it." (c) Section 608 (b) (3) (B) is amended by striking out the semicolon and the word "and" at the end of the first proviso and inserting in lieu thereof a colon and the following: And provided further, That the principal obligation of the mortgage shall not, in any event, exceed 90 per centum of the Administrator's estimate of the replacement cost of the property or project on the basis of the costs prevailing on December 31, 1947, for properties or projects of comparable quality in the locality where such property or project is to be located; and". (d) (1) Section 608 (b) (3) (C) is amended by striking out "$1,500 per room" and inserting in lieu thereof "$8,100 per family unit"; (2) Section 608 (b) (3) (C) is amended by striking out the colon and the proviso and inserting in lieu thereof a period. (e) Section 609 is amended (a) By striking out all of paragraph (1) of subsection (b) and inserting in lieu thereof the following: "(1) The manufacturer shall establish that binding purchase contracts have been executed satisfactory to the Administrator providing for the purchase and delivery of the houses to be manufactured, which contracts shall provide for the payment of the purchase price at such time as may be agreed to by the parties thereto, but, in no event, shall the purchase price be payable on a date in excess of thirty days after the date of delivery of such houses, unless not less than 20 per centum of such purchase price is paid on or before the date of delivery and the lender has accepted and discounted, or has agreed to accept and discount, pursuant to subsection (i) of this section a promissory note or notes, executed by the purchaser, representing the unpaid portion of such purchase price, in which event such unpaid portion of the purchase price may be payable on a date not in excess of one hundred and eighty days from the date of delivery of such houses." (b) By striking out the first and second sentences of paragraph (4) of subsection (b) and inserting in lieu thereof the following: "The loan shall involve a principal obligation in an amount not to exceed 90 per centum of the amount which the Administrator estimates will be the necessary current cost, exclusive of profit, of manufacturing the houses, which are the subject of such purchase contracts assigned to secure the loan, less any sums paid by the purchaser under said purchase contracts prior to the assignment thereof. The loan shall be secured by an assignment of the aforesaid purchase contracts and of all sums payable thereunder on or after the date of such assignment, with the right in the assignee to proceed against such security in case of default as provided in the assignment, which assignment shall be in such form and contain such terms and conditions, as may be prescribed by the Administrator; and the Administrator may require such other agreements and undertakings to further secure the loan as he may determine, including the right, in case of default or at any time necessary to protect the lender, to compel delivery to the lender of any houses then owned and in the possession of the borrower." (c) By adding at the end of subsection (f) the following new sentence: "The provisions of section 603 (d) shall also be applicable to loans insured under this section and the reference in said section 603 (d) to a mortgage shall be construed to include a loan or loans with respect to which a contract of insurance is issued pursuant to this section." (d) By adding at the end thereof the following new subsection: "(i) (1) In addition to the insurance of the principal loan to finance the manufacture of housing, as provided in this section, and in order to provide short-term financing in the sale of houses to be delivered pursuant to the purchase contract or contracts assigned as security for such principal loan, the Administrator is authorized, under such terms and conditions and subject to such limitations as he may prescribe, to insure the lender against any losses it may sustain resulting from the acceptance and discount of a promissory note or notes executed by a purchaser of any such houses representing an unpaid portion of the purchase price of any such houses. No such promissory note or notes accepted and discounted by the lender pursuant to this subsection shall involve a principal obligation in excess of 80 per centum of the purchase price of the manufactured house or houses; have a maturity in excess of one hundred and eighty days from the date of the note or bear interest in excess of 4 per centum per anum; nor may the principal amount of such promissory notes, with respect to any individual principal loan, outstanding and unpaid at any one time, exceed in the aggregate an amount prescribed by the Administrator. "(2) The Administrator is authorized to include in any contract of insurance executed by him with respect to the insurance of a loan to finance the manufacture of houses, provisions to effectuate the insurance against any such losses under this subsection. "(3) The failure of the purchaser to make any payment due under or provided to be paid by the terms of any note or notes executed by the purchaser and accepted and discounted by the lender under the provisions of this subsection, shall be considered as a default under this subsection, and if such default continues for a period of thirty days, the lender shall be entitled to receive the benefits of the insurance, as provided in subsection (d) of this section except that debentures issued pursuant to this subsection shall have a face value equal to the unpaid principal balance of the loan plus interest at the rate of 4 per centum per annum from the date of default to the date the application is filed for the insurance benefits. "(4) Debentures issued with respect to the insurance granted under this subsection shall be issued in accordance with the provisions of section 604 (d) except that such debentures shall be dated as of the date application is filed for the insurance benefits and shall bear interest from such date. "(5) The Administrator is authorized to fix a premium charge for the insurance granted under this subsection, in addition to the premium charge authorized under subsection (h) of this section. Such premium charge shall not exceed an amount equivalent to 1 per centum of the oroginal principal of such promissory note or notes and shall be paid at such time and in such manner as may be prescribed by the Administrator." (f) Section 610 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraph: "The Administrator is further authorized to insure or to make commitments to insure in accordance with the provisions of this section any mortgage executed in connection with the sale by the Government, or any agency or official thereof, of any of the so-called Greenbelt towns, or parts thereof, including projects, or parts thereof, known as Greenhills, Ohio, Greenbelt, Maryland, and Greendale, Wisconsin, developed under the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935, or of any of the village properties under the jurisdiction of the Tennessee Valley Authority, and any mortgage executed in connection with the first resale, within two years from the date of its acquisition from the Government, of any portion of a project or property which is the security for a mortgage insured pursuant to the provisions of this section." (g) Title VI is amended by adding after section 610 the following new section: "SEC. 611. (a) In addition to mortgages insured under other sections of this title, and in order to assist and encourage the application of cost-reduction |