Local planners looking to patch up strained budgets with federal funds shouldn’t get their hopes up too high. Preserving existing programs and serving people currently in housing will be the focus of the federal housing agency for the next two fiscal years, said Barbara Fields, the newly appointed New England Regional Administrator of for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Fields spoke to a packed room of city planners and developers at the annual meeting of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) in Newton.

Faced with administration demands for belt-tightening, "we chose to focus on protecting the families that we currently serve," said Fields, which will mean prioritizing existing affordable housing unit renewals over new construction, keeping current recipients in their homes and serving the most vulnerable through programs including such programs as Section 8 rental assistance and housing vouchers for homeless veterans.

While Fields offered little hope of expansion, she suggested HUD is aiming to improve its fiscal picture in 2012, which will enable the agency to help preserve 2010 funding levels for FHA loans.

"We anticipate that increased FHA and Ginnie Mae receipts will help to replenish the FHA insurance fund and reduce the overall deficit," said Fields. "But make no mistake, we understand that program cuts in general will be painful across the region."

One priority which is still a focus of funding is smarter, transit-oriented development. Last year, MAPC received a $4 million implementation grant to help it get its existing plans off the ground; Fields indicated that though the grant money would only be enough to get started, the agency was willing to work with MAPC on further "iterations" of the plan.

Jennifer Raitt, chief housing planner for MAPC, said the council would soon begin studies on impediments to fair housing and response to climate change in order to help address some of HUD’s questions about the plan.

Prior to accepting the HUD post earlier this year, Fields had been executive director of the Rhode Island office of Local Initiatives Support Corp., which aids community development groups.

"The work that I had done for the last 10 years prior to coming to HUD was about raising the issues, linking the issues, bringing people to the table and getting things done. I hope I can be a partner in that third part… you raise the issues, you link them together, but people want to see things get done," said Fields, saying she looks forward to working with MAPC with smart growth plans. "I came to HUD with that in mind."