Housing and Community Development Coalition Criticizes House Resolution Cutting Budget to FY08 Levels
WASHINGTON, D.C. – January 26, 2011 – (RealEstateRama) — The House of Representatives today approved H.R. 38, allowing the chair of the House Budget Committee to set nondefense discretionary spending to FY08 levels or lower for FY11. This could result in a spending reduction of more than $60 billion in the current fiscal year, hurting all Americans and disproportionately impacting those in the greatest need.
The Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding, (CHCDF), a coalition of 70 national organizations representing all 50 states and territories, urges lawmakers to protect the families and communities served by these critical housing and community development resources. “CHCDF members are concerned about the hundreds of thousands of low income people who will be harmed by the funding decisions made this week,” said John Bohm, CHCDF spokesperson. “We recognize there are difficult economic decisions at hand but these decisions should not hurt the nation’s most vulnerable families and communities nor undermine the fragile economic recovery.”
Funding choices, according to CHCDF members, should focus on long term stability and recognize that non-security discretionary spending programs are an extremely small fraction of government spending. The deep cuts to affordable housing and community development programs necessitated by H.R. 38 would have a devastating impact.
Affordable housing and community development programs serve millions of people by preventing homelessness, promoting economic mobility and job creation, and stabilizing communities. Cuts to housing and community development programs as part of broader efforts to reduce discretionary spending could severely hurt vulnerable families, children and seniors, and undermine the fragile economic recovery.
A list of CHCDF members is available online at http://www.nlihc.org/doc/CHCDF_Members_January2011.pdf
###
National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC)
727 15th Street NW, 6th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20005
202/662-1530; Fax 202/393-1973; " title="mailto:
Contact:
Melissa Quirk, (202) 662-1530 x 230 
