The Obama administration is seeking $47.6 billion for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the fiscal year 2014 budget, an increase of $4.2 billion or 9.7% above the 2012 enacted level.
In a press statement, HUD stressed that more than 90% of this funding increase will be used to ‘maintain current levels of rental and homelessness assistance for vulnerable families, the overwhelming majority of whom earn less than 30 percent of their area's median income.’
‘The president understands that in today's budget climate, we can't build ladders of opportunity on a mountain of debt,’ says HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. ‘As we work to strengthen our nation's housing markets, we can't lose sight of our commitment to house and serve millions of extremely low-income families who live on the margins of our economy.’
However, the department's press statement did not point out that the budget also included a proposed $943 million cash infusion to help the struggling Federal Housing Administration (FHA) cover its expected losses.
FHA Commissioner Carol Galante downplayed the budget's financial help for her agency. Reuters reports that Galante told reporters in a conference call that the FHA had until Sept. 30 to formally request a cash infusion from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
‘The FHA, while still under stress from legacy loans, has made significant progress and is on a sound fiscal path forward,’ Galante said. ‘We are continuing to act and do everything possible to ensure that the impact of these legacy loans … are corrected as soon as possible.’