Political Quotes

“I am enthusiastic about this bill. It has bipartisan support, supported by development organizations. It is supported by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the Education Association of the University Centers. So it has clearly met the needs of a number of folks. But as we take a look at what the bill does specifically, it creates a new program that allows for the designation of special impact areas which allows the Secretary to waive certain planning requirements to help isolated areas in distressed communities. This designation, I think, really will enable the Secretary to respond more quickly to get help to those areas, to get economic help to those communities that need it; and when they need it, they need it quickly. It creates a performance-based incentive program that rewards high performance, as determined by criteria established in regulation, with a bonus of up to 10 percent of the project cost that can be used on other eligible activities. Again, these reforms focus on getting better results. It creates a planning performance award equal to 5 percent of the grant amount, which may be awarded prior to closeout of a grant if the recipient satisfies four mandated criteria. And as with any program or any reform, it removes outdated and burdensome administrative procedures.”