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8A Page 13 certain costs, including operating and technicai assistance costs, of empfoyer-assisted housing programs. Since state and locai governments do not pay taxes,this bill appears ta allow a city to assist an employee with housing and then assign(presumably sell)the value of that assistance to a private entity which can use it as a tax credit against their taxes. The League is working with Rep.Velazquez's office to clarify whether this is how the language is intended to work for public employers. H.R. 1850 has been double-referred to both the House Ways and Means Committee and to the House Financial Services Committee. Community Development Btock Grants Last mon#h, Sens. Patrick�eahy(D-Vt.)and Norm Coleman(R-Minn.}sent a letter to the Senate Budget committee to increase funding for the Community Development Block Grant(CDBG) prograrn to$4.1 b�liion. Sen. Boxer signed onta the letter of support,while Sen. Feinstein sent in her own letter of support since she sits on the Senate Appropriations Committee. The League is cEosely monitoring the CDBG funding program and will request that cities send in letters of support to the House and Senate Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriation subcommittee, when the measure is taken up. At this time, neither committee has refeased a schedule to indicate just when they will mark up their FY 2008 measures. Further information on this issue will be provided as it becomes available in future issues of Priorrfy Focus. Pubiic Safety Sen. Feinstein has introduced S.456,the Gang Abatement and Prevention Act of 2007. This measure and its companion biil in the House, H.R. '[582{SchifF and Bono�will establish new crimes and tougher federal penalties to deter and punish members of illegal street gangs engaged in violent crimes that affect interstate and foreign commerce. S. 456 also provides more than $1 billion in funding for gang enforcemant, prevention and intervention programs over five years. Unlike previous versions,this legislation has no juvenile transfer provisians, no mandatory minimums, and no death penaities. These bifls also wilf create and provide assistance for High Intensity Interstate Gang Activity Areas(HIIGAA}. S.456 and H.R. 1582 will require the Atforney Genera4 to designate certain locations as HIIGAAs and provide assistance+n the form af criminal street gang enforcement teams made up of Iocal, state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate and prosecute criminal street gangs in each high intensity interstate gang activity area. The League supports these measures based upon its existing policy to support stiffer penatties for viofent offenders and support for additional funding for local agencies to recoup the costs af crime and increase community safety. The League is working with its federal lobbyist to determine how the Attorney General will designate a site as a HIIGAA,with the goal of maximizing the potential availability af this tool for California cities. The House will consider H.R. 1700{Weiner D-IV.Y.)the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Improvements Act of 2007 next week. H.R. 1760 would authorize increased funding levels for the Community Oriented Policing Services(COPS)program to$1.15 biflion annually for five years, beginning in FY 2008. In addition to direct grants to hire additional police oificers, the bill calfs for Ivcal efforts to combat gangs, drug trafficking and other criminal activities in elementary and secondary schools,to defray local po(ice costs incurred in performing anti-terrorist or homeland security missions and to crack do�vn on methamphetamine manufacturing and distribution. The bill also encourages state and local police agencies to hire former military members for some of the new law enforcement jobs. The companion biEl in the Senate is S. 368(Biden). 7