HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge served as the sole witness during a U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services (HFSC) hearing, “Oversight of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Federal Housing Administration,” on January 11.
In his opening statement, HFSC Chair Patrick McHenry (R-NC) noted that “a lot had changed” in the years since Secretary Fudge’s last appearance before the committee, citing the growing cost of rent and homeownership and the 12% increase in homelessness reported in HUD’s recent Annual Homelessness Assessment Report (AHAR).
Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA) also highlighted the growing number of people experiencing homelessness, attributing the spike to the severe shortage of affordable, accessible housing available to people with extremely low-incomes and noting that “over the last several decades, housing costs have outpaced wage growth...There is no state, metro area, or county where a minimum wage worker is able to afford the rent on a modest two-bedroom home.” The Ranking Member noted the role critical pandemic-era relief programs and protections played in keeping over 12.4 million people housed at the height of the pandemic.
In her opening remarks, Secretary Fudge noted the department serves more than 9 million people daily, including through rental assistance, public housing, community development, disaster recovery, and other programs, but she also acknowledged the “ever-growing need for the type of assistance HUD provides.” The Secretary also emphasized that, due to her department’s unique role, a “strong HUD” is essential to ending the affordable housing and homelessness crisis in this country.
During the more than five-hour hearing, Secretary Fudge responded to questions posed by members on the effectiveness of HUD programs and mechanisms for oversight of the department. Representative Andy Barr (R-KY) questioned Secretary Fudge about Housing First, an evidence-based practice that prioritizes access to low-barrier housing, plus wrap-around services as needed, for people experiencing homelessness. The Representative falsely claimed that “some [Housing First] advocates have changed their tune,” before misquoting NLIHC President and CEO Diane Yentel from her recently published op-ed on MSNBC.com.
Representative Sylvia Garcia (D-TX) corrected her colleague, stating that she “would like the record to reflect that Ms. Yentel’s actual statement reads, ‘while communities have become even more effective at helping people exit homelessness by using the Housing First approach, homeless systems cannot keep up with increased inflow’.” Representative Garcia noted that the increase in homelessness is due to the affordable housing crisis, which would only get worse without adequate funding for federal housing programs.
Learn more and access resources, including a recording of the hearing and the Committee Memorandum, here.