Rural Community Assistance

Loan fund:the department had a year record breaking year. the loan fund closed 72 loans for over $104 million in our rural communities. this generated 815 of affordable housing units, helped produce and repair 10,465 waste/water connections, created 3,910 in community facility space and helped create or retain 2,173 jobs. rcac began making loans to native owned businesses through the ssbci program, closing 3 loans for a total of $500,000 in partnership with the cahuilla and san pasqual tribes. the pipeline of applications remains strong, the outstanding portfolio stood at over $151.8 million with a delinquency rate of less than 6% percent. a new assistant director position was created and filled.

Rcacs other services include capacity building, training, and resources for other nonprofit organizations.

Housing: mutual self help housing rcac assisted our 41 grantees to build 456 new construction homes and rehabilitate 60 homes, despite frequent pauses in federal funding. the housing counseling program provided training both on-line and in person. 34 on-line trainings educated 742 attendees and 14 in person trainings educated 224 attendees. staff continues to support 13 local housing counseling organizations with hud funding and technical assistance. staff is preparing to on-board at least three new organizations in fy26.development solutions continues to work with non-profits in hawaii, montana, utah, california, guam, oregon, and washington to assist them in building housing development and operational capacity.the homeownership program continued to support usda rural developments section 502 direct mortgage loan program through training, intermediary processing services, and general promotion to underserved communities. 93 section 502 loan packagers received the five-day training. staff also processed 130 loans submitted by local packagers with 98 home loans closing during the fiscal year. eight washington homeownership organizations received rcac support in preparing and submitting project funding applications to the state. the community resilience and disaster planning program (formerly disaster recovery services). staff continues to assist in the camp fire recovery in butte county, california, assisting them with mitigation planning and implementation to reduce future wildfire risk. they also are completing a wildfire recovery plan in new mexico and are completing a hazard mitigation plan revision for a tribe in northern california.