State Legislatures Magazine: September 2001

Editor's Note: This article appeared in the September 2001 issue of NCSL's magazine, State Legislatures. To order copies or to subscribe, contact the marketing department at (303) 364-7700.

This Is the House the Legislature Built

Habitat for Humanity believes everyone deserves a decent place to live. Legislators in Ohio and Tennessee agree and have pledged to build a house in every district.

By Cheryl Runyon and Cathy Atkins
Across the nation, it is small steps taken by volunteers that are providing homes for low-income families. And these Habitat for Humanity projects have partners in building those houses-state legislatures.

It's a trend that puts legislators back, hard at work, in their communities and seems to be spreading across the nation. Michigan's House Republicans built their first Habitat home in 1997 at the urging of Representative Mark Jansen. Legislators donated money, time or both to the effort; legislative staff (and even the governor) pitched in to help. Washington also joined the effort shortly after Michigan.

Then came Ohio.

Ohio Congressman John Boehner (a former state legislator) challenged Senator Scott Nein and Representative Gary Cates to "complete the second half of a duplex" he was building for Habitat for Humanity. From there the challenges to pitch in and help build a home snowballed.

"We issued a formal challenge to the rest of the lawmakers in the legislature to build a house in every district. Then we got to thinking, if we can touch 99 families in Ohio, just think how many families we could help if a house was built in every state legislative district in the nation. Wouldn't that be a great thing?" Nein says.

Consequently, the Ohio General Assembly issued a challenge last year to every legislator in the nation to consider working on a Habitat house in his or her district. The Ohio House has even put together a video and guidebook for other legislatures to use in developing their plans of action for Habitat homes.

For its part, the Ohio General Assembly is well on track in its goal of 33 houses a year for three years. "We are on schedule to complete 99 homes, one in each of the House districts, in three years. We are completing the last of the 30 homes for our first fiscal year ending June 30," reports Arthur Krauer, Ohio Habitat legislative project coordinator.

"Plans are underway to begin the 34 homes that are scheduled for this year, and affiliates are already chomping at the bit to schedule for the final 35 homes. So we are on schedule."

Tennessee, for one, has taken up the challenge. The General Assembly began work in April 2000 to build a Habitat house in each of that state's 99 legislative districts over the next three years. Nineteen houses had been completed and dedicated as of December 2000 with several other home dedications scheduled during the month; 10 other homes are under construction.

"Building houses ensures that legislators take abstract concepts and apply them to real-life problems," Senator Stephen Cohen points out. "Legislators have a positive feeling about being able to directly affect the lives of, and help to solve problems for, their constituents. In return, the new homeowners have a positive feeling about government and how it works. Another plus is that legislators are actively participating in urban renewal."

After dedicating a house in Roane County, Senator Lincoln Davis reports, "The heart and soul of America is best exposed when we work together to provide adequate, safe and sanitary housing."

For more information about the Tennessee General Assembly project, contact Michelle Shaffer, legislative project coordinator, Habitat MidAmerica, P.O. Box 60447, Nashville, TN 37206, mshaffer@hfhi.org. For more information about the Ohio General Assembly project, contact Krauer, Habitat MidAmerica, (614) 224-8446, Akrauer@occh.org.

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