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Press Room

Congress Should Not Cut Housing and Community Development Funding

Contact: Mary Barron, 202-289-3500 ext. 280

WASHINGTON, Oct. 25 -- Congress, particularly the House of Representatives, is currently considering a number of budgetary cuts to offset recent spending. Some of these proposals would call for additional cuts in domestic appropriations. Such cuts could fall on housing and community development programs serving millions of families in need.

The National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) strongly urges Congress to spare affordable housing and community development programs further budgetary cuts. Vital programs such as Housing Choice Vouchers (HCV), Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), and public housing are already underfunded. Public housing operations are currently funded 11 percent below amounts necessary for basic operations; the public housing capital fund for major repairs faces a 10 percent reduction; the popular CDBG program currently faces an 8 percent reduction; and questions remain about the adequacy of funding for the renewal of Section 8 vouchers under existing distribution methodologies.

While we remain hopeful that the upcoming House and Senate negotiations on the FY 2006 Transportation Treasury HUD Appropriations bill (TTHUD) will mitigate many of these concerns, and we welcome the positive comments of Chairman Kit Bond and the support of dozens of senators who sought to increase funding for these programs last week during Senate consideration of TTHUD, the prospect of further cuts to housing and community development funding is chilling. Given the systemic underfunding over many years of housing and community development programs compared to demonstrated need, it is imperative that funding levels for these programs be maintained at the highest level possible.

As the recent hurricanes in the Gulf States have reminded us, an adequate supply of safe, affordable housing is an absolute necessity. Housing authorities throughout the nation are struggling to serve those displaced by the hurricanes in addition to, rather than in lieu of, those needing housing assistance prior to the hurricanes. Housing and community development providers have been doing more with less for years. The unfortunate reality is, you eventually do less with less.

"While the path of these budgetary cuts remains uncertain," said NAHRO Executive Director Saul N. Ramirez, Jr., "what is certain is that further cuts to housing and community development programs would have wide-reaching and long-term negative effects on communities and people in need."