NLIHC and our partners at the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding (CHCDF) are hosting a National Call-In Day on October 12 for advocates to contact their members of Congress and urge them to make significant investments in affordable, accessible housing, homelessness, and community development programs in the fiscal year (FY) 2023 budget. NLIHC will be releasing an updated advocacy toolkit in the coming days that advocates can use to craft their talking points to Congress.
FY2023 Appropriations
Both the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate released draft FY2023 spending bills earlier this year written with little or no Republican input, raising concerns that a final spending package will offer significantly less funding than either draft. The House bill for Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (THUD) would provide roughly $3 billion more for HUD’s vital affordable housing, homelessness, and community development programs than the Senate’s proposal. See NLIHC’s analysis of the House draft and the Senate draft, as well as our updated budget chart, for more information.
The FY2023 spending bill likely represents the last opportunity this year for Congress to make robust investments in affordable housing and homelessness programs. Congress must not pass up the chance to provide the significant funding needed to ensure the nation is moving towards safe, affordable, and accessible housing for all.
Advocates can help ensure that affordable housing programs receive robust funding by contacting their members of Congress and urging them to support the highest level of funding possible for affordable housing, homelessness, and community development programs, including for NLIHC’s top priorities:
- Full funding for the Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (TBRA) program to renew all existing contracts and expand housing vouchers to an additional 140,000 households.
- $5 billion for the Public Housing Capital Fund to preserve public housing, and $5.04 billion for the Public Housing Operating Fund.
- $3.6 billion for HUD’s Homeless Assistance Grants program to address the needs of people experiencing homelessness.
- $100 million for legal assistance to prevent evictions.
- $300 million for the competitive tribal housing program, targeted to tribes with the greatest needs.
Organizations can also join CHCDF’s annual 302(b) letter to demand that Congress provide the highest possible level of funding for affordable housing, homelessness, and community development resources in FY2023.