The U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Appropriations released on July 11 its fiscal year (FY) 2024 draft Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (THUD) spending bill. The bill proposes funding HUD at $68.2 billion, a $6.4 billion (or roughly 10%) increase to HUD programs over previously enacted levels. HUD needs an approximately $13 billion increase in funding over current levels just to maintain existing assistance. The spending bill proposes deep cuts to or even elimination of some HUD programs but appears – as NLIHC and our partners urged – to adequately fund most rental assistance programs. To appease House Republicans’ demand for deep cuts in all spending bills, the Transportation section of the THUD Subcommittee bill appears to have borne the deepest overall cuts to programs. The bill also rescinds over $564 million in unobligated balances from the Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes, as well as $25 billion in Internal Revenue Service (IRS) funding provided in the “Inflation Reduction Act,” to provide additional funding to HUD’s budget. For details, see NLIHC’s full analysis and updated budget chart.
The release follows months of threats from House Republicans to slash federal funding for domestic programs to FY22 levels, a reduction that HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge warned would make it “impossible [for HUD] to stave off mass evictions.” The THUD Subcommittee bill does propose to cut funding drastically and even zeroes out funding for some HUD programs. However, thanks to the hard work and dedication of advocates around the country, the THUD Subcommittee bill spares some key programs that get or keep the lowest-income people housed. The Subcommittee bill proposes funding the Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (TBRA) and Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) programs at levels that may be sufficient to renew existing contracts and provides a slight increase for HUD’s Homeless Assistance Grants (HAG) program, which is vital to connecting people experiencing homelessness to the resources and supports they need to find and maintain safe and stable housing. Programs aiming to address the dire housing needs of Native communities would receive significant funding increases in FY24.
Other important programs would face funding cuts, including the Public Housing Capital Fund, Public Housing Operating Fund, Section 811 Housing for Persons with Disabilities, and Section 202 Housing for the Elderly. The HOME Investments Partnership Program would be cut by more than half. Funding for several other programs – including the Family Unification Program, Incremental Vouchers, Choice Neighborhoods Initiative, and Housing Mobility Services – would be zeroed out completely.
As they have before, House Republicans included a provision in the THUD Subcommittee bill that would prohibit HUD from using funds to implement, administer, or enforce the proposed “Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing” rule.
The bill will likely soon go to a full Committee vote. However, it is not yet clear whether the bill will have the votes needed to pass on the House floor.
The U.S. Senate is expected to release its draft spending bills in the coming week. Senate Committee on Appropriations Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) and Vice-Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) are drafting their bills to the level agreed upon in the “Fiscal Responsibility Act.” The Senate bills are expected to represent the “high water mark” for appropriations funding in the coming fiscal year. Due to the appropriations levels agreed to in the debt ceiling deal, even that high water mark bill is likely to include cuts to critical housing and community development programs.
Take Action!
Thanks to the hard work of advocates across the country in mobilizing to weigh in with their elected officials, HUD’s vital rental assistance, homelessness assistance, and tribal housing programs were spared from what were expected to be draconian cuts in the House’s proposed budget. But we have more work to do to ensure that these funding levels remain in a final bill and that other critical programs, such as Public Housing, are also fully funded.
Keep making your voice heard, and tell Congress that it cannot balance the federal budget at the expense of people with the lowest incomes! Advocates can take action TODAY in the following ways:
- Contact your senators and representatives to urge them to expand – not cut – investments in affordable, accessible homes through the FY24 spending bill, including NLIHC’s top priorities:
- Implementing full funding for the Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (TBRA) program to renew all existing contracts.
- Providing full funding for public housing operations and repairs.
- Fully funding homelessness assistance grants.
- Providing $100 million for legal assistance to prevent evictions.
- Funding a permanent Emergency Rental Assistance program.
- Maintaining funding for competitive tribal housing grants for tribes with the greatest needs
- Use NLIHC’s advocacy toolkit, “Oppose Dramatic Cuts to Federal Investments in Affordable Housing,” for talking points, sample social media messages, and more!
- Join over 2,000 organizations by signing on to a national letter from the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding (CHCDF), calling on Congress to oppose budget cuts and instead to support the highest level of funding possible for affordable housing, homelessness, and community development resources in FY24.