Congress Passes Continuing Resolution to Fund HUD Programs
While Congress enacted five of the 12 appropriations bills before the Oct. 1, 2019 fiscal year, they were unable to reach agreement on the spending bill that included funding for affordable housing programs. A continuing resolution signed last week by President Trump will keep HUD and some other federal programs funded through Dec. 7.
The HUD bill is in a package of spending bills along with the Agriculture, Financial Services and General Government, and Interior appropriations bills. The sticking points that led to a continuing resolution until Dec. 7 are not related to HUD programs.
While there are not massive differences between the Senate and House HUD appropriations bills, the Senate bill appropriates $800 million more for HUD than the House bill. A few key details:
- The bills provide $678 million for the Section 202 program.
- The Senate bill provides $51 million for new Section 202 construction versus the $46 million provided by the House bill.
- The Senate bill also includes $10 million for a new home modification program within the Section 202 account that would help low income seniors age in place.
- Both bills provide $90 million for Service Coordinators.
- Both bills provide $11.747 billion the renewal of Project-Based Rental Assistance contracts, which is expected to be sufficient to fully renew these contracts.
While it is possible Congress will swiftly take up the remaining spending bills after the November elections, there is some skepticism that Congress will enact appropriations bills in a “lame duck” session before the new 116th Congress is installed in January 2019.
We will continue to urge Congress to enact a HUD appropriation bill as quickly as possible. A recent LeadingAge action alert describes how members and other stakeholders can join us in our advocacy efforts.
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