WASHINGTON, D.C.- The National Low Income Housing Coalition commends members of Congress for reaching a strong bipartisan spending agreement for the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2017 that provides HUD and USDA with the resources they need to ensure millions of the poorest among us have a place to call home. We urge Congress to pass the clean FY17 omnibus spending package as soon as possible.
While Congress must significantly increase investments in affordable housing to address America’s rental crisis, the overall funding levels for HUD and USDA in this FY17 spending bill reflect a positive outcome given the deep funding cuts proposed by President Trump. We were pleased that Congress rejected the president’s call for $18 billion in cuts to domestic programs and some members’ efforts to attach a number of harmful and divisive policy riders.
Affordable housing investments will face an even more difficult budget climate for the FY18 appropriations process unless Congress lifts the arbitrarily low spending caps required by the Budget Control Act (BCA) and rejects the disastrous funding cuts proposed by Mr. Trump. Even flat funding for affordable housing is unacceptable because it would not provide enough resources to cover inflationary costs. As a result, thousands of families would lose access to stable housing, putting them at increased risk of homelessness. The impacts of such cuts would be devastating.
NLIHC calls on Congress to approve the FY17 omnibus bill as soon as possible and then prepare FY18 spending bills that reject Mr. Trump’s call for draconian cuts, lift the BCA caps, and fully fund critical affordable housing and homelessness programs.
For more details on funding levels for HUD and USDA Rural Housing programs, see NLIHC's updated budget chart and full analysis.
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Established in 1974 by Cushing N. Dolbeare, the National Low Income Housing Coalition is dedicated solely to achieving socially just public policy that assures people with the lowest incomes in the United States have affordable and decent homes.