U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development FY 2011 Budget Request
On February 1, President Obama released the Administration’s fiscal year (FY) 2011 budget for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which proposes funding levels for various housing and community development programs.
If enacted, the budget would provide $48 billion in gross discretionary funding for HUD, $1.5 billion (or 3 percent) more than the FY 2010 spending levels. The budget also provides funding for two new initiatives: 1) the Transforming Rental Assistance program which is designed to preserve approximately 300,000 units of public and assisted housing through enhancing administrative efficiency, promoting the leverage of private capital, and providing tenant mobility, and 2) the Catalytic Investment Competition Grant program for economic development financing in neighborhoods in need of revitalization.
Key highlights of the 2011 budget important to IACED members include the following.
Increase Funding for the Housing Choice Voucher Program
- $19.6 billion for the Housing Choice Voucher program to help more than two million extremely low- to low-income families with rental assistance to live in decent housing in neighborhoods of their choice.
- Continues funding for all existing mainstream vouchers and provides flexibility to support new vouchers that were leased and $85 million in special purpose vouchers for homeless and at-risk of homelessness families with children, and persons with disabilities.
Preserve Affordable Rental Units
- Provides $9.4 billion for the Project-Based Rental Assistance program to preserve approximately 1.3 million affordable rental units through increased funding for contracts with private owners of multifamily properties.
Launch the Conversion of Public Housing to Project-based Vouchers
- Requests $350 million to fund the first phase of this multi-year initiative to regionalize the Housing Choice Voucher program and convert Public Housing to project-based vouchers. The primary goals of this initiative are to improve the physical condition and management of the public housing stock, increase the mobility of assisted families, and streamline HUD oversight of its rental assistance programs.
Implement the Homeless Emergency Assistance Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act
- $2.1 billion for HUD’s Homeless Assistance Programs to effectively implement the HEARTH Act. Enacted in May 2009 to fundamentally transform the Federal response to homelessness. HEARTH streamlined three current homeless programs into one, placed greater emphasis on homelessness prevention, and provided increased funds for renewal costs and permanent housing beds.
- Support the key priorities reflected in HEARTH, including $200 million for Emergency Solutions Grant funding for about 10,000 new permanent housing beds.
Expand Opportunity and Enhance Sustainability
- Provides $150 million to help stimulate comprehensive regional and community planning efforts that integrate transportation and housing investments that result in more regional and local sustainable development patterns, reduce greenhouse gases, and increase more transit accessible housing choices for residents.
- Invests $250 million in 2011 in order to continue HUD’s effort to make a range of transformative investments in high-poverty neighborhoods where public and assisted housing is concentrated.
- Requests $88 million to support homeownership and foreclosure prevention through Housing Counseling and $20 million to combat mortgage fraud.
Link to the HUD budget document here. Access the complete FY 2011 budget here. Enterprise Community Partners has summarized the FY 2011 budget addressing housing and community development programs across the federal government. Visit this Enterprise web site, Budget and Appropriations to view a detailed housing and community development Budget Chart and Summary.
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