Comment Submitted by Kristen Schulz, Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity

As part of 91.220(2)(v), in addition to describing eligible applicants and the process for soliciting and funding applications or proposals, I think that HUD should also require participating jurisdictions' action plans to provide a website or other public access method whereby the participating jurisdiction lists the applications/proposals that it reviewed in determining which projects to fund with HOME funds, and the relative ranking of these proposals/applications. This information should be posted publicly before entering into a written agreement for funding. In addition, the action plan should identify what criteria the participating jurisdiction uses to evaluate proposals for HOME funding along with the relative importance of each criteria. For example, it would be useful to know if a project is more likely to receive HOME funding if it is located within a certain geographic area, if it served a particular income level, if the project is located near public transportation, schools, or hospitals, or is built to a certain "green" building standard. Listing the relevant criteria and identifying their relative importance will help improve the types of projects that are submitted for possible HOME funding, and increase transparency of funding decisions.