OXNARD : U.S. Rejects City Bid for Housing Funds

Federal housing officials have rejected Oxnard’s annual request for housing funds because the city forgot to include a statement saying the money would not be used to lobby federal officials, city officials said this week.

The statement is a new requirement that city housing officials must submit to request funds from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Oxnard Housing Director Sal Gonzalez said.

The statement promises that the city will not use federal money to influence federal officials involved in approving housing contracts, he said.

Failure to include the statement was an oversight, Gonzalez said.

City housing officials will be forced to draft a new application, which could delay approval of the funds by about three months, he said.

The federal housing money would have been used in a city-run voucher program that provides rent subsidies for low-income families.

Oxnard had applied for about $840,000 in federal money to help pay rent for 100 families, Gonzalez said. The application was rejected in late August.

Gonzalez complained that federal officials have been lenient in the past toward housing authorities who make mistakes in applications.