Policy
Shawn Poynter / There Is More Work To Be Done
Shawn Poynter / There Is More Work To Be Done
Senate Committee Approves FY18 USDA Funding Bill
On July 20 the Senate Appropriations Committee passed S. 1603, which would fund USDA, including the rural housing programs, for fiscal year 2018. The Senate bill keeps most rural housing programs at current levels, somewhat higher than the levels in the House bill.
The Senate bill does not include some changes in programs proposed in H.R. 3268, passed by the House Appropriations Committee on July 12. It does not mention the Rural Economic Infrastructure Grant program, which in the House bill would combine Section 504 grants and Section 533 grants with some utilities and business grant programs. In addition, it does not make H-2A visa holders eligible for Section 514/516 farmworker housing, a change in the House bill that was adopted at the committee level.
The Senate’s Committee Report (S.Rept. 115-131) discusses the need for solutions to the maturing mortgage issue for Section 515 rental housing, not mentioned in the House bill or report.
The Committee is very concerned about the alarming number of multi-family housing mortgages scheduled to mature in the next few years. As these mortgages mature, projects and units will be removed from USDA’s affordable rural housing program, placing very low income rural residents in jeopardy of untenable rent increases and possible eviction. In spite of numerous requests from the Committee, the Department has failed to identify and develop potential solutions to this looming crisis.
The Secretary is directed to engage affordable housing advocates, project owners, tenants, and others as practicable, to find acceptable and effective long term solutions that will retain projects in the affordable rural housing program. The need for affordable rural housing is too great to allow the program to expire.
As of noon on July 24, neither the Senate nor the House has scheduled USDA appropriations for floor action.
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|
USDA Rural Dev. Prog. |
|
Senate Bill |
|||
|
502 Single Fam. Direct |
$900 |
$1,000 |
0 |
$900 |
$1,000 |
|
502 Single Family Guar. |
24,000 |
24,000 |
24,000 |
24,000 |
24,000 |
|
504 VLI Repair Loans |
26.3 |
26.3 |
0 |
24 |
26.3 |
|
504 VLI Repair Grants |
28.7 |
28.7 |
a |
a |
28.7 |
|
515 Rental Hsg. Direct Lns. |
28.4 |
35 |
0 |
28.4 |
35 |
|
514 Farm Labor Hsg. Lns. |
23.9 |
23.9 |
(-11)b |
15 |
23.8 |
|
516 Farm Labor Hsg. Grts. |
8.3 |
8.3 |
0 |
6 |
8.3 |
|
521 Rental Assistance |
1,390 |
1,405c |
1,345 |
1,345 |
1,345 |
|
523 Self-Help TA |
27.5 |
30 |
(-4)b |
25 |
30 |
|
533 Hsg. Prsrv. Grants |
3.5 |
5 |
0 |
a |
5 |
|
538 Rental Hsg. Guar. |
150 |
230 |
250 |
230 |
230 |
|
Rental Prsrv. Demo. (MPR) |
22 |
22 |
(-4)b |
15 |
22 |
|
542 Rural Hsg. Vouchers |
15 |
19.4 |
16 |
20 |
19.4 |
|
Rural Cmnty. Dev’t Init. |
4 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
a. Would become part of Rural Economic Infrastructure Grant program.
b. Budget proposes to rescind unobligated funds from three programs: $11 million from Sec. 523 self-help, $4 million from Sec. 514/516 farm labor housing, and $4 million from MPR.
c. Includes $40 million in advance funding for FY18, so total available in FY17 is $1.365 billion and total available in FY18 would be $1.385 billion.