Royce Questions Delay in HUD Extension of Moving to Work Programs
WASHINGTON, D.C. – October 22, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Representative Ed Royce (R-Calif.) questioned Mr. Orlando Cabrera, former Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing at the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department (HUD), on the delayed renewal of Moving to Work (MTW) programs during a House Financial Services Committee hearing entitled “The Future of Housing in America: 50 Years of HUD and its impact on Federal Housing Policy.”
“As Chairman Hensarling already mentioned, the Moving to Work program has largely been a success – and also an initiative that the Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino has pioneered to the benefit of many of my constituents. I think the extension of preexisting MTW contracts at public housing authorities, including San Bernardino which has a rental assistance utilization rate higher than 90%, has been significantly delayed. It still remains undone,” said Rep. Royce. “Mr. Cabrera, let me ask you: What ramifications will the delay by HUD have on MTW housing authorities? And how is HUD ‘gutting the original intent’ of the program as you referenced in your testimony?”
“I think that the real concern I have about HUD delaying is that eventually those contracts expire and what you have is a housing authority going back to the usual rubric, the Housing Act of 1937, and all of the impacts. San Bernardino County is currently developing in… San Bernardino itself, and they’re redeveloping their own public housing. That’s the kind of thing that will stall that effort,” replied Mr. Cabrera.
“It’s important that the flexibility that has been inherent in the MTW agreements that were drafted, frankly from 1999 because it came into being in 1998 through roughly 2008, that it stay that way. If you take away that flexibility you will take away the capacity of these housing authorities to do as much as they can do in respect to their properties and their tenants,” concluded Mr. Cabrera.
Watch Rep. Royce’s questioning of the witness here or by clicking on the image below:
http://royce.house.gov/Components/Redirect/r.aspx?ID=467398-67941562
