ACORN Plans Foreclosure Mayhem

Michelle Malkin reports that ACORN is planning to engage in acts of civil disobedience to block home foreclosures.

“ACORN’s foot soldiers, funded with your tax dollars, will scream, pound their fists, chain themselves to buildings, padlock the doors and engage in illegal behavior until they get what they want. It’s a recipe for anarchy,” Malkin writes.

Meanwhile, I had read some reports that the ACORN money had somehow been taken out of the porkulus bill that President Obama signed into law amid fanfare yesterday.

Not true.

I haven’t seen the enrolled version of the bill yet, but based on the conference report (PDF file) agreed upon by the House and the Senate last week, here are my initial observations.
 
The funding I previously identified that ACORN might get its hands on consisted of $1 billion for the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) program, $10 million for the Self-Help and Assisted Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP), and $4.19 billion for foreclosure relief through the Neighborhood Stabilization Program.
 
The conference report cuts up the money a bit differently:

At p.84 it references the Public Housing Capital Fund and indicates that $1 billion will be awarded by competitive process. I’m sure if ACORN and other left-wing activist groups can try to obtain this money.

At p.86 it references the Community Development Fund and indicates that $3 billion will be allocated. Of that $3 billion, $1 billion will go to CDBG which ACORN can try to get its hands on, and $2 billion will go to the Neighborhood Stabilization Program which ACORN can seek unless lawmakers changed the bill language from what it was before.
 
At p.87 it references the Self-Help and Assisted Homeownership Opportunity Program. It appears conferees killed off the $10 million request.
 
There might be other provisions in there that I missed.

This is what it boils down to: ACORN and similar community activist groups have a shot at at least the $1 billion in CDBG funds, but perhaps up to $4 billion in total it appears. I won’t know what the total is until I have a chance to read the final enrolled version of the bill.