HUD Secretary Scott Turner appeared before the Senate THUD Appropriations subcommittee last week on the administration’s FY 2026 budget request.

What they’re saying: In her opening statement, Chair Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) raised concerns about the budget request, calling out lackluster funding for CDBG, HOME, and rental assistance, and raising larger concerns about the uncertainty created from the budget proposal.

“I’m concerned about the broader risk across federal housing programs not only at HUD, but also at USDA and at Treasury. It feels like we’re pulling on multiple loose threads without a clear vision of what comes next. While I understand and share the administration’s concerns about rising costs and shrinking revenues, the uncertainty created by these proposals increases risk and risk-raised cost. The cost of uncertainty is reflected in the cost of materials, of labor and other times, it is reflected in either fewer housing units or even entire projects being built.”

Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) called the administration’s budget “not a serious proposal. It does not meet the urgent housing needs of our country.”

He stated that cutting funds and shifting the burden to the local level will not solve the housing crisis and questioned whether local authorities have the ability or capacity to pick up needed programs and assistance.

He also touted his bipartisan Choice in Affordable Housing Act (S. 890) with Sen. Cramer (R-ND) to attract more private landlords to accept Housing Choice Vouchers.

Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) asked the Secretary to reconsider funding for the PRO Housing program, which awards jurisdictions that take steps to reduce regulatory barriers to housing development, saying:

“I’ve…been radicalized on the extent to which there really are regulatory barriers and they really are an impediment to building enough housing for everybody, not just affordable housing capital A, capital H, but housing for everybody. And I agree with you there are federal barriers, but the truth is if you talk to any developer and this 20 to 40 percent of the cost of a home being regulations, most of those regulations are at the local level.”

What’s Next: The House and Senate appropriations committees will now draft their own HUD budgets.

The Senate has yet to schedule its markups.