WASHINGTON, D.C. -- United States Senator Daniel K. Inouye announced that the Senate approved the House-Senate Conference Report which includes $2 million for the planning and design of a comprehensive community resource center to be utilized by American Samoans and Pacific Islanders at Kuhio Park Terrace (KPT) in Honolulu.

"I am pleased that the Congress recognized the importance of this needed facility. This center would replicate a traditional Polynesian structure, to the greatest extent possible, and provide a place for American Samoans and Pacific Islanders to meet, share and practice their cultural traditions. In addition, this center would establish an outreach presence in such areas as health and human services, vocational, bilingual and job skills training, business assistance, and drug abuse, domestic violence, and parental education initiatives," stated Senator Inouye.

The center would also have a recreational component to provide a safe location and constructive activities for the KPT residents who are under the age of 18. It would also support the existing child care center to aid working mothers. Lastly, the center would be open to community-based economic development initiatives, such as an open marketplace where the arts and crafts of the Samoans and Pacific Islanders, fresh produce, and prepared food products for consumption are sold.

"This will be a community-based and driven center, developed for and by the residents. Their input and guidance will be most important as the center is developed to ensure that it meets their needs," continued Inouye.

The Congress also included a provision that would expand nationwide the streamlined Federal Housing Administration's (FHA) single family down payment program. Without this program, FHA borrowers would be required to make significant up front payments due to the high cost of housing in Hawaii. This effectively eliminates borrowers who can clearly make the monthly mortgage payment. Many individuals are paying rent in an amount that is equal to or above what their mortgage payments would be, but do not have the ability to accumulate the required down payment. The Congress established a pilot program that provided the streamlined down payment requirements to Alaska and Hawaii. Last year, the Congress directed HUD to study the proposal to streamline the FHA's down payment formula and to explain its impact on the continental United States. Further, the Senate approved an increase in the current FHA single family mortgage loan limits.

These initiatives are included in the Fiscal Year 1999 Veterans Affairs, Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Bill which will now be transmitted to the White House.