Draft:Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority

Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority

Agency overview
Formed	1971 (1971)
Preceding agency	Wisconsin Housing Finance Authority (1971–1983)
Headquarters	908 E. Main St. Madison, Wisconsin, U.S. 43°04′56.7336″N 89°22′18.858″W
Agency executives	Elmer Moore Jr., CEO & Executive Director Ranell Washington, Board Chair
Website	Agency website

The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) is an independent public corporation authorized by the state government of Wisconsin to provide financing for home-buyers, home-owners, and business and agricultural development projects in the state. This assistance is mostly granted in the form of low-interest loans. WHEDA receives no direct funding from the state government, and is mostly funded through the sale of tax-exempt bonds. WHEDA was previously known as the Wisconsin Housing Finance Authority, from 1971 to 1983, before its mission expanded to business development projects. WHEDA profits also fund the WHEDA Foundation, a tax-exempt nonprofit which operates WHEDA's grant-making operations; grants are targeted to housing-related charities operating in Wisconsin.

WHEDA is overseen by a board composed of six government officials and six members of the public; public members are appointed by the governor of Wisconsin in staggered four-year terms. The governor appoints the board chair for one-year terms. Day-to-day leadership of WHEDA is handled by a chief executive officer (and "executive director"), appointed by the governor, with confirmation from the Wisconsin Senate, for two-year terms. The current chief executive officer is Elmer Moore Jr., appointed by Governor Tony Evers in April 2022.

WHEDA has two main offices, in Madison and Milwaukee.

Leadership

Chief executive officer

Elmer Moore Jr. was appointed to serve as CEO and executive director by Governor Tony Evers in April 2022, to fill the remainder of the two-year term scheduled to end January 3, 2023, after the resignation of previous CEO Joaquín J. Altoro. Time-bound executive-appointed terms in Wisconsin—such as the two-year term for this office—have become essentially unlimited terms due to rulings of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, enabling officeholders to remain until formally replaced by another executive-appointed and Senate-confirmed successor. For Moore, his appointment took place during a gubernatorial election year, and the Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate was not inclined to act on Evers' nomination, hoping to defeat him in that election. The Senate took up Moore's nomination after Evers won re-election, finally confirming him (for the 2021–2023 term) on October 17, 2023.

Board

The WHEDA board consists of 12 members. Six members are public appointees, selected by the governor for staggered four-year terms. Four seats are reserved for state legislators—one seat for a designee of each of the bipartisan leadership of the two state legislative chambers. The final two seats are reserved for the secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Administration and the chief executive officer of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, or their designees. The board officers are also appointed by the governor, but for only one-year terms.

The current board chair is Ranell Washington of Milwaukee. He was first appointed to the board by Governor Tony Evers in 2020, and is now in his second four-year term.

Position	Name	Hometown	Term ends	Appointer
				Position	Name
Chair	Ranell Washington	Milwaukee	2028	Governor	Tony Evers
Vice Chair	Jeffrey L. Skrenes	Superior	2028	Governor	Tony Evers
Treasurer	Jasmine Mercado	Milwaukee	2028	Governor	Tony Evers
Secretary	Joe Stephenson	Menasha		Governor	Tony Evers
Member	Jennifer Campbell	Madison		Governor	Tony Evers
Member	--Vacancy--			Governor	Tony Evers
Member	Romaine Quinn	Birchwood		Senate Majority Leader	Devin LeMahieu
Member	Kristin Dassler-Alfheim	Appleton		Senate Minority Leader	Melissa Agard
Member	Todd Novak	Dodgeville		Assembly Speaker	Robin Vos
Member	Kalan Haywood	Milwaukee		Assembly Minority Leader	Greta Neubauer
Member	Diana Maas	Madison		Secretary of the Dept. of Administration	Kathy Koltin Blumenfeld
Member	Jennifer Campbell	Madison		C.E.O. of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation	Melissa Hughes

History

WHEDA was originally established as the Wisconsin Housing Finance Authority by 1971 Wisconsin Act 287, passed by the 80th Wisconsin Legislature and signed by governor Patrick Lucey. The original entity was created with the goal of financing housing construction developments. Implementation of the law was held up for two years until the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that its establishment was constitutional, in the case State ex rel. Warren v. Nusbaum (59 Wis. 2d 391). The Wisconsin Housing Finance Authority officially began operations in July 1973, and issued their first debt instruments in March 1974.

In 1983, the 86th Wisconsin Legislature revisited the program, broadening the mission of the program to include financing for other economic development projects. The changes were formalized in 1983 Wisconsin Act 81, which also changed the name of the entity to the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority.

Over the following decade, the Legislature further expanded the WHEDA's mission, to include insuring and subsidizing farm operating loans, interest rate reductions, and loan guarantee programs for drought assistance, agricultural or small business development, recycling, or tourism, or assistance to businesses operating in targeted economic zones in the state.

A WHEDA modernization bill in 2005 increased financing capacity for rental housing, small business loans, and single mortgages to first-time home buyers.

Programs

First mortgage assistance

WHEDA is not a loan-originator, their loans are processed by certified lending partners.

Down payment assistance

WHEDA offers down payment assistance for home purchases using WHEDA loan products, with assistance up to 6% of the purchase price. WHEDA previously offered down payment assistance up to $7,500 for non-WHEDA loans, but that program has been suspended due to loss of federal funding through from the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, one of the programs targeted by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency.

Rural counties assistance

Eligible borrowers in certain rural Wisconsin counties can receive further interest rate reductions when utilizing one of WHEDA's loan products.

WHEDA Foundation

The WHEDA Foundation was estbalished in 1983, and since 1985 has administered the Housing Grant Program on behalf of WHEDA. WHEDA Foundation grants are targeted to support specific projects for organizations which provide housing or housing assistance, such as homeless shelters, women's shelters, veterans shelters, residential treatment facilities, etc. Grants are typically used for facility repairs, remodeling, or expansion projects.

External links

• Official website