Cross Post: Florida Hardest Hit Housing TARP Spending Plan Out; California Refuses to Disclose Their $700 Million Plan.

In a new post HERE on my Oregon Housing Blog, I provide a link to Florida's plan to spend $418 Million in TARP Hardest Hit housing funds. This plan was sent to Treasury on April 16th along with plans from 4 other states (Arizona, California, Michigan, Nevada).

Regretfully, the same post also points out that California is refusing to disclose how it plans to spend their $700 Million TARP Hardest Hit funding allocation, claiming that Treasury won't let them.

As I have noted in prior posts, I am optimistic that Oregon will provide a much better example of open government than any of the first round Hardest Hit funded states [ Florida clearly was the best of the first round states].

I expect Oregon will have more community meetings and more specific alternatives, and at some point will publish the complete draft plan for Oregonians to comment upon.

(A link to my earlier cross post about absence of public disclosure in first round states is HERE; you can find all of my posts on this topic on the Oregon Housing Blog with a keyword search on the blog using term "hardest hit").

Originally created and posted on the Open Government, News and Issues Oregon Blog.

Cross Post: Public Disclosure Lacking in State Applications for $1.5 Billion in Hardest Hit Housing TARP Funding.

Oregon Housing Blog Post HERE details lack of public disclosure from first round states applying for $1.5 billion in Hardest Hit housing TARP funding. Four days prior to the application submission deadline of April 16th these states have provided very little specifics about how they plan to spend the money.

Post also highlights required plan contents and opportunity for Oregon to provide a public disclosure model for the $88 Million plan they will submit as a second round Hardest Hit state, NLT June 1, 2010.

Originally created and posted on the Open Government News and Issues, Oregon Blog.