Republicans on the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Appropriations announced new guidance banning nonprofit organizations from receiving funding (commonly referred to as “earmarks”) from HUD’s Economic Development Initiative (EDI) program in fiscal year (FY) 2025.
The change came after Republicans objected to earmarks included in the FY24 spending bill that provided funding for nonprofit organizations serving members of the LGBTQ+ community. The U.S. Senate’s Committee on Appropriations continues to allow nonprofits to receive EDI funding through the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) bill.
House Appropriations Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) objected to the move, highlighting the impact the change will have not only on community services for LGBTQ+ people but on other critically important community programs, including those run by religious organizations and those serving seniors, veterans, and survivors of intimate partner violence.
The decision foreshadows trouble ahead for the FY25 appropriations process. Any differences between the House and Senate appropriations bills – including differences in earmarked funding – must be resolved before a final bill can be passed. Appropriators will also need to draft their FY25 spending bills according to the limitations of the “Fiscal Responsibility Act,” the 2023 agreement to raise the federal debt ceiling for two years in exchange for capping FY24 spending at roughly FY23 levels and allowing for an only 1% spending increase in FY25. Because the cost of housing and homelessness programs rises every year, increased funding is necessary simply to maintain the number of households and communities served by these vital programs.
Take Action: Tell Congress to Provide Significant Funding Increases for HUD in FY25
Your advocacy makes a difference! It is thanks to the hard work of advocates that in FY24 – at a time when programs faced cuts of up 25% – HUD received increased funding in the final spending bill.
Congress needs to keep hearing from you about the importance of affordable housing and homelessness programs! NLIHC is calling on Congress to provide the highest possible funding for HUD’s affordable housing and homelessness programs in FY25, including significant funding for NLIHC’s top priorities:
- Full funding to renew all existing contracts for the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program and expand assistance to 20,000 more households.
- $6.2 billion for public housing operations and $5.135 billion for public housing capital needs.
- $4.7 billion for HUD’s Homeless Assistance Grants (HAG) program.
- $100 million for the Eviction Prevention Grant Program.
- At least $1.3 billion for Tribal housing programs, plus $150 million for competitive funds targeted to tribes with the greatest needs.
Advocates can continue to engage their members of Congress by:
- Emailing or calling members’ offices to tell them about the importance of affordable housing, homelessness, and community development resources to you, your family, your community, or your work. You can use NLIHC’s Take Action page to look up your member offices or call/send an email directly!
- Using social media to amplify messages about the country’s affordable housing and homelessness crisis, and the continued need for long-term solutions.
- Sharing stories of those directly impacted by homelessness and housing instability. Storytelling adds emotional weight to your message and can help lawmakers see how their policy decisions impact actual people. Learn about how to tell compelling stories with this resource.
National, state, local, tribal, and territorial organizations can also join over 2,200 organizations on CHCDF’s national letter calling on Congress to support the highest level of funding possible for affordable housing, homelessness, and community development resources in FY25.