March 25, 2015
More and more municipalities are introducing a system to provide residents with financial support for house renovations as a result of joint efforts by the Japanese Communist Party and small business operators across Japan.
As of July 2014, 1,559 local governments, or 90 percent all municipalities in Japan, had a system in place which grants subsidies to residents who use local constructors for housing renovations, including improvement of seismic safety and barrier-free remodeling, according to the Housing Renovation Promoting Council.
Considering the system to be effective in boosting local economies, the Japanese Communist Party has been working to spread the system nationwide in cooperation with local branches of the National Federation of Merchant and Industrialists’ Organizations (Zenshoren) and the National Federation of Construction Workers’ Unions (Zenkensoren).
JCP member of the House of Representatives Tamura Takaaki on January 30 at a House Internal Affairs Committee meeting asked for confirmation that grants from the state to local governments can be used to carry out measures to assist local residents’ housing renovations. A government official in reply said local governing bodies can use the grants for such measures if they are designed to stimulate local economies.
Following this reply, some local authorities have moved to introduce the housing renovation subsidy system and others have started to improve their subsidy systems.
Tottori’s Kurayoshi City will launch a program to provide financial assistance for home renovations in April by using the state grants. The JCP in the assembly long demanded the establishment of such a program. Under the program, the city will pay 10% (up to 200,000 yen) of renovation costs.
In Isumi City in Chiba Prefecture, in response to a request from a Zenkensoren local branch, the city has decided to utilize the state grants to maintain its home renovation subsidy system.
As of July 2014, 1,559 local governments, or 90 percent all municipalities in Japan, had a system in place which grants subsidies to residents who use local constructors for housing renovations, including improvement of seismic safety and barrier-free remodeling, according to the Housing Renovation Promoting Council.
Considering the system to be effective in boosting local economies, the Japanese Communist Party has been working to spread the system nationwide in cooperation with local branches of the National Federation of Merchant and Industrialists’ Organizations (Zenshoren) and the National Federation of Construction Workers’ Unions (Zenkensoren).
JCP member of the House of Representatives Tamura Takaaki on January 30 at a House Internal Affairs Committee meeting asked for confirmation that grants from the state to local governments can be used to carry out measures to assist local residents’ housing renovations. A government official in reply said local governing bodies can use the grants for such measures if they are designed to stimulate local economies.
Following this reply, some local authorities have moved to introduce the housing renovation subsidy system and others have started to improve their subsidy systems.
Tottori’s Kurayoshi City will launch a program to provide financial assistance for home renovations in April by using the state grants. The JCP in the assembly long demanded the establishment of such a program. Under the program, the city will pay 10% (up to 200,000 yen) of renovation costs.
In Isumi City in Chiba Prefecture, in response to a request from a Zenkensoren local branch, the city has decided to utilize the state grants to maintain its home renovation subsidy system.
