Acting Secretary Todman Makes Case on Capitol Hill for FY 25 HUD Funding
by Gabriel Smith, Legislative Affairs Analyst
Acting Secretary Todman Makes Case on Capitol Hill for FY 25 HUD Funding
This week, HUD’s Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman appeared before the Senate and House Transportation-HUD committees to lay out the Biden Administration’s Fiscal Year 2025 HUD budget. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle previewed their concerns for funding in FY 25 after a tumultuous FY 24 appropriations cycle.
Acting Secretary Todman balanced listing the accomplishments of existing programs and defending a modest increase in funding over FY 24 levels. The President’s budget prioritizes homelessness assistance, voucher expansion, and housing supply increases amidst rising costs. The Acting Secretary also fielded criticism from members from both parties for lapses in HUD’s efficacy in responding to housing emergencies in their states. Here’s some insights from this week’s meetings:
The Senate hearing was mostly attended by Republican T-HUD Subcommittee members but led by Chairman Brian Schatz (D-HI). Schatz praised HUD for maintaining HOME funding in the FY 25 budget and encouraged the administration to partner on his bipartisan legislation to make CDBG-DR permanent during an exchange about HUD’s lack of response to fires on the island of Maui. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) asked Sec. Todman to explain the benefits of expanding local flexibility for the Housing Trust Fund while pressing Todman to ensure HUD does a better job of streamlining its Congressionally Directed Spending (earmarks) particularly for nonprofits. Senator Reed’s point on nonprofits comes after House Appropriators announced last week that nonprofits would be barred from applying for earmarks in the House’s FY 25 T-HUD bill. Other committee Democrats praised Biden’s policies but were firm in their criticisms of HUD without assigning specific blame given Todman’s recent ascendance to the Acting Secretary role.
Republicans asked questions that echo many of their party’s campaign points, criticizing the President’s policies and the efficacy of HUD. Ranking Member Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) quickly called attention to the FY 25 budget caps set by the Fiscal Responsibility Act as a reminder that the President’s proposals should be tempered to reflect the caps. Senator Bill Kennedy (R-LA) pointed to rising costs and inflation as manmade deterrents to the American dream. Senators from more rural communities drew on specific emergency responses from HUD that were delayed or non-existent. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) called attention to projects that have been delayed and unfunded since as far back as 2022 as examples of breakdowns between HUD and rural communities. Sec. Todman pledged HUD would get to the bottom of these disconnects and even offered her direct phone number.
New T-HUD Chair Steve Womack (R-AR) opened his questioning with CDBG-DR, calling the Secretary’s attention to tornadoes that recently devastated the central region of the country. Sec. Todman remarked on the tragedy but clearly stated that HUD requires Congress to provide those funds and affirmed HUD’s long-term commitment to help rebuild devastated communities. In an exchange with Rep. Gonzalez (R-TX) about increasing housing supply, Sec. Todman referenced an administration-wide Housing Supply Action Plan where agencies collaborate to address supply challenges utilizing tools across the government to build more affordable housing. Several members from both sides of the aisle asked about HUD’s response to the rise in homelessness. Sec. Todman explained to Rep. Valadao (R-CA) that there is an alarming number of people experiencing homelessness for the first time after COVID Emergency programs had previously helped them avoid losing their homes. To Rep. Watson Coleman (D-DE), Sec. Todman explained that while Housing Choice Vouchers are one of HUD’s major funding priorities and one avenue to combat homelessness, inspections and challenges dealing with landlords make the funds harder to access for many. HUD is committed to improving its working relationship with landlords.
Several Committee members asked about HUD-VASH. Chair Womack asked about why there are almost 30,000 unused vouchers to which Sec. Todman explained that there’s been difficulty getting the private market to accept the vouchers and that HUD is working with the VA to improve their referral pipeline. Following a question about eligibility, Todman informed the subcommittee that veteran income eligibility for the vouchers would be increased from 50% to 80%.
What’s Next?
Budget hearings are crucial to the appropriations process and will help frame negotiations. Now that the Biden Administration has released its budget and Congress is moving forward with its FY 25 budget hearings, the House and Senate will start constructing their own appropriations bills. The President’s budget helps kickstart this process by framing budget proposals for his/her allies in Congress and providing a starting point for negotiations. Once the House and Senate Appropriations Committees publish their budget proposals, the T-HUD subcommittees will reconvene to markup those bills.