FY 2026 THUD Bill Released as Congress Weighs Action Ahead of January 30 Continuing Resolution Deadline 

Early Tuesday, Congress released the FY 2026 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) appropriations bill. The bill follows the House and Senate proposals released last summer and comes in the wake of the longest government shutdown in history, which occurred after Congress failed to enact FY 2026 funding or pass a continuing resolution at the end of FY 2025. 

The legislation must still be approved by both the House and the Senate (currently in recess for the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday) before it can be enacted into law. 

The bill provides $77.3 billion for HUD in FY 2026, an increase over FY 2025, which was funded through a year-long continuing resolution. The bill increases funding for the Housing Choice Voucher program, Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA), Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program and Homeless Assistance Grants, while maintaining level funding for HOME, CDBG, ROSS, and the Public Housing Capital Fund. It reduces funding for the Public Housing Operating Fund and the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative. 

Although the Operating Fund is funded at $789 million below FY 2025 levels, the Operating Fund Shortfall Account is increased by $312 million. Taken together, these accounts are funded $477 million less than in FY 2025. 

• Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) Renewal Account: The bill includes $34.957 billion for HAP renewal funding. This is a $2.812 billion increase from FY 2025 enacted levels. The bill combines the Mainstream voucher HAP account with the general program HAP account. 
• HCV Administrative Fees: The bill includes $2.836 billion in HCV administrative fees. This is a $65 million increase from the FY 2025 level. 
• Tenant Protection Vouchers (TPVs): The bill includes $601 million for TPVs, which is $264 million more than the FY 2025 level. The bill also allows TPV funding to be used to provide assistance to PHAs that would otherwise be forced to terminate Emergency Housing Voucher households as a result of insufficient funding. 
• Family Unification Program/Foster Youth to Independence Initiative: The bill includes $30 million for the Family Unification Program and the Foster Youth to Independence Initiative, which is the same level as FY 2025. The bill would rename the Foster Youth to Independence Initiative to “The Melania Trump Foster Youth to Independence Initiative.’’ 
• HUD-VASH: The bill provides $15 million for HUD-VASH voucher assistance for veterans, which is the same level as FY 2025. 
• Project-Based Rental Assistance: The bill provides $18.543 billion for project-based rental assistance (of which not more than $509 million is to be used for performance-based contract administrators). This is $2.053 billion more than the FY 2025 level. 
• Public Housing Operating Fund: The bill reduces this amount to $4.687 billion, a $789 million decrease which would represent a lower proration than in previous years. 
• Public Housing Operating Fund Shortfall: While the overall operating fund level is falling, the bill would increase the Public Housing Operating Fund Shortfall amount to $337 million. This is a $312 million increase and will help address the more than $700 million in national shortfall need. 
• Public Housing Capital Fund: The bill provides $3.2 billion for the Public Housing Capital Fund, which matches recent years. This account includes competitive grants for housing-related health hazards ($50 million), Emergency Capital Needs ($65 million), and agencies in receivership ($15 million). 
• Choice Neighborhoods Initiative: This bill provides $25 million for the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative. This amount is $50 million less than the FY 2025 level. Of this amount, half ($12.5) is set aside for awards to PHAs. 
• Family Self-Sufficiency Program: The bill provides $156.4 million for the FSS program, an increase of $15.4 million compared to FY 2025.
• Resident Opportunity and Self-Sufficiency (ROSS) Program: The bill provides $40 million for the ROSS program, level with FY 2025 funding.  
• Jobs Plus: The bill provides $10 million for the program, a $5 million decrease from FY 2025. 
• Community Development Block Grant (CDBG): The bill provides level funding for the CDBG program at $3.3 billion. This is the same as FY 2025 funding.  
• HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME): The bill provides level funding for the HOME program at $1.250 billion. This is the same as FY 2025 funding. 
• Homeless Assistance Grants: The bill provides more than $4.417 billion—a $366 million increase from FY 2025. Among these grants, the bill provides a majority of the funds to the Continuum of Care program at $4.010 billion.  

NAHRO will release a detailed analysis of the bill in the coming days and continue to closely monitor its progress through Congress.