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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMissouri Becomes Second State To Divert Foreclosure Funds Away From Homeowners To Balance Its Budget
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/02/13/423677/missouri-foreclosure-settlement-budget/Last week, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) announced that he would use the funds his state received from a $26 billion mortgage settlement between 49 states and the nations largest banks to help balance the states budget, even though the settlement money was marked to help homeowners. In all, Walker will use $25.6 million of the $31.6 million Wisconsins state government receives to help close a budget shortfall.
Though Walkers move to push struggling homeowners aside may seem radical, it is now being followed by at least one other state. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon (D) and Attorney General Chris Koster (D) have pledged to put $40 million of the states $196 million share of the settlement into the states general fund to boost its higher education budget, Stateline reports:
'Koster, a Democrat, told reporters on Thursday that he agrees with the governors call for more higher education funding and will transfer the $40 million Nixon has requested into the general fund, citing the severe budget shortages the state faces.'
Though specific terms of the settlement have not been released, states have been given significant leeway on how to spend the money from it. According to the National Mortgage Settlement website, however, the money is supposed to help fund consumer protection and state foreclosure protection efforts. The full $26 billion, though, is already woefully short of what is needed to ameliorate the nations housing crisis, and diverting funds from it to other problems will only exacerbate that fact.
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Missouri Becomes Second State To Divert Foreclosure Funds Away From Homeowners To Balance Its Budget (Original Post)
xchrom
Feb 2012
OP
They hate the government but they will take handouts from it to plaster over their failed policies?
Rambis
Feb 2012
#4
I said it was a shite deal form the beginning, and it just gets worse, stab in the back redux
stockholmer
Feb 2012
#12
Fawke Em
(11,366 posts)1. Maybe I'm missing it, but has it been explained how this
is even legal?
It looks as though, if the money is earmarked for certain things, that it can't be used for something else.
tsuki
(11,994 posts)9. The money is being given to the states with a
suggestion of how it should be spent.
nanabugg
(2,198 posts)2. People who own or who are trying buy a home usually vote.
This info should be a warning to home buyers trying to stay above board or trying to climb out of the hole. The GOP doesn't really care about them.
WCGreen
(45,558 posts)6. Apparently some democrats don't care about home owners in trouble...
atreides1
(16,072 posts)3. Another free give away
Didn't anyone think of putting restrictions on how this money was to be used?
So home owners were only used as a means to garner support for this agreement...I don't believe this money was ever truly intended to help those who needed it...just another way for states to get cash to close their budget shortfalls.
I wonder did any of the States Attorney Generals kiss the suffering homeowners before they decided to fuck them?
tsuki
(11,994 posts)10. Schneiderman, for one.
Rambis
(7,774 posts)4. They hate the government but they will take handouts from it to plaster over their failed policies?
uponit7771
(90,335 posts)7. DNC gets really quite about conservative hypocrazy, to America's detriment
LiberalFighter
(50,888 posts)11. quite?
SoCalDem
(103,856 posts)5. It should be issued in voucher form ONLY to be used for the intended purpose
bastards
Marrah_G
(28,581 posts)8. It is infuriating
stockholmer
(3,751 posts)12. I said it was a shite deal form the beginning, and it just gets worse, stab in the back redux