Congress

HUD published the FY 2020 Fair Market Rents (FMRs) here. The FY 2020 FMRs will be effective October 1, 2019, unless there is a request for reevaluation by September 30, 2019. The Federal Register notice contains the procedures for such reevaluation requests. These FMRs are used in the Housing Choice Voucher, the Moderate Rehabilitation Single […]

The Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding will hold a webinar on FY 2020 Funding Outlook for Affordable Housing Programs on September 26 at 4:00 pm EDT. Doug Rice from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Moha Thakur from the National Housing Trust, Steve Berg from the National Alliance to End Homelessness and […]

Yesterday the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies (T-HUD) favorably reported its FY 2020 funding bill to the full committee. The full Senate Appropriations Committee will hold a hearing on the bill at 10:30 am EDT on September 19 in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 106 and via webcast.

As of publication, the T-HUD bill has yet to be released. Overall the subcommittee received a 302(b) allocation of $74.3 billion, $3.2 billion above the FY 2019 enacted levels. HUD received $56.0 billion in total budgetary resources, which is offset by $7.4 billion in receipts from the Federal Housing Agency/Ginnie Mae for a net funding level of $48.6 billion, an increase of $2.3 billion above the FY 2019 enacted level.

The House has passed a set of housing-related bills, advancing these measures to the Senate. The Strategy and Investment in Rural Housing Preservation Act of 2019 (H.R. 3620) would permanently authorize the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Multifamily Housing Preservation and Revitalization program, and would authorize $1 billion to carry out the program. The Safe Housing for Families Act of 2019 (H.R. 1690) would authorize over $300 million over three years to fund the installation and maintenance of carbon monoxide detectors in HUD’s public housing units.

Finally, the Homebuyer Assistance Act of 2019 (H.R. 2852) would make it easier for homebuyers to buy a home with a Federal Housing Administration mortgage by alleviating the current shortage of certified appraisers.

HUD released a proposed rule that would revise HUD regulations by implementing sections 102, 103 and 104 of the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2016 (HOTMA S. 3083/H.R. 3700 of the 114th Congress). These sections make sweeping changes to the United States Housing Act of 1937, particularly those affecting income calculation and reviews. Comments are due by November 18.

Last week the Department of the Treasury and HUD sent their Housing Finance Reform Plans to President Trump following his March Memorandum, which ordered the reports. The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs held a hearing on Housing Finance Reform: Next Steps with HUD Secretary Ben Carson, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and FHFA Director Mark Calabria as witnesses.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) has released a housing report, “Locked Out: Reversing Federal Housing Failures and Unlocking Opportunity.” The report offers strategies the federal government could pursue to meaningfully address the nation’s housing affordability challenges – including expanding the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program, making HUD’s Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers an entitlement program to […]

As Congress returns from its August recess, lawmakers must act to secure funding for fiscal year (FY) 2020 ahead of the September 30 deadline. The White House released a list of requested anomalies, or changes to the current funding levels and legislative language, if lawmakers rely on a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government past Sept. 30. HUD’s Section 202 Housing for the Elderly secured a coveted spot on that list.

Last week, HUD published the Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Fair Market Rents (FMRs) in the Federal Register. The new rents will become effective on October 1, 2019 for the Housing Choice Voucher program and Moderate Rehabilitation Single Room Occupancy program, unless HUD receives a valid request for reevaluation of specific area FMRs. The notice also includes responses to public comments from the June 5, 2019 Federal Register notice announcing two method changes in the calculation of FMRs.

The National Housing Conference (NHC) released a new white paper on housing finance reform that calls for bipartisan cooperation between Congress and the Trump administration to complete housing finance reform leading to the release of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from conservatorship. he paper establishes seven conditions to guide administrative and statutory reform to ensure that the U.S. will have a well-functioning housing finance system that provides consistent, affordable credit to borrowers across the nation and through all parts of the credit cycle, while minimizing the risk of another taxpayer-funded bailout.

Last week the House Financial Service Committee (HFSC) held a field hearing titled “Examining the Homelessness Crisis in Los Angeles.” In her opening remarks, Chairwoman Maxine Waters called for a  bold and comprehensive response at the federal, state and local levels to address the homelessness crisis.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released its Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds Final Rule. The rule denies visas to persons the government deems to be a ‘public charge’, through their income and potential use of federal programs like Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance, and Public Housing programs, as well as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Medicaid and parts of Medicare. The final rule significantly expands the list of federal programs that can be used to determine if someone is deemed a public charge and is scheduled to take effect on Oct. 15, 2019.