Congress began working on the FY 2020 appropriation bills in March and the House of Representatives has passed 10 of the 12 appropriation bills required by law. Relating to housing, the House passed H.R. 3055, which provides funding for Rural Development and Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The legislation would provide funding for the following housing programs: (The lists highlight portions of the bill)
Rural Housing Service
- $1B for Direct Loan
- $24B for Unsubsidized Guaranteed Loans
- $28M for 504 Housing repair loans
- $45M for 515 Rental Housing
- $250M for 538 Guaranteed Multifamily Housing Loans
- $5M for 523 self-help housing land development loans
- $5M for 524 development loans
Housing and Urban Development
- $22.8B for Tenant Based Rental Assistance through Section 8
- $12.6B for Project Based Section 8
- $3.6B for Community Development Block Grants
- $2.8B for Homeless Assistance Grant
- $1.75B for Home Investment Partnership Program
The Senate stalled on reviewing any of the appropriations bills until a deal is struck on discretionary spending caps for FY2020. On August 1, Senate passed the agreement to raise the spending caps by $160 billion each year for FY2020 and FY2021 and suspended the debt ceiling through mid-2021. The House passed the agreement in late July and President Trump signed it on August 2. With this agreement in place, the Senate will start reviewing appropriation bills in the subcommittees. However, Congress is currently on August recess and will have to expedite their appropriations review process to meet the September 30 deadline once they return.