Fiscal Year 2016 Appropriations Update
This week, NAHMA received preliminary information on the 302(b) allocations which will be allotted to the various Appropriations Subcommittees in the House of Representatives. A 302(b) allocation functions like a spending cap for each subcommittee. Every fiscal year, the Appropriations Committee receives a single 302(a) allocation for all of its programs. It then decides how to divide this funding among its 12 subcommittees by creating the 302(b) allocations. From there, the subcommittees will draft their appropriations bills using the 302(b) allocation.
For fiscal year 2016, the House Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (T-HUD) Subcommittee would be given a 302(b) allocation of $55.27 billion. While this amount is an increase over the FY 2015 302(b) allocation for the House T-HUD Subcommittee, it will prove to be insufficient to meet the needs for HUD’s affordable housing programs.
To provide context for the issues with this number, HUD competes with the Department of Transportation for program funding under this cap, and HUD alone has a $3 billion funding shortfall which must be filled. This $3 billion shortfall was caused in part by the transition to a calendar year funding model for Project-Based Section 8 in FY 2015 wherein all contracts would be funded on January 1 rather than their individual renewal date. This transition corresponded with a funding cut that left PBS8 receiving only $9.73 billion in FY 2015. The funding cut in FY 2015 and calendar year transition was contingent on the PBS8 program receiving full, up-front funding for all contract renewals in FY 2016. To fulfill this 12-month obligation, PBS8 was slated to need at least a $1.2 billion increase over the FY 2015 funding levels in FY 2016.
NAHMA continues to doubt the Department’s estimates that a $1.2 billion increase for the program will be sufficient, but we are now concerned whether providing this amount is even possible under such a limited 302(b) allocation. The Department of Transportation is having severe funding issues as well, particularly in the Highway Trust Fund, which is set to go broke sometime this summer. It will be nearly impossible for the House T-HUD Subcommittee to provide the necessary funding increases to these critical programs unless drastic cuts are made to other essential programs such as HOME, Tenant-Based Section 8 (vouchers), or the Community Development Block Grant.
Next week on April 29, the House T-HUD Subcommittee will have a markup of its appropriations bill for housing and transportation programs in FY 2016. After the markup session, NAHMA will be sending a grassroots action alert to members on the funding level proposed for PBS8 and what actions may be necessary to ensure full 12-month funding for all contracts.
Budget Conference Begins
On Monday, April 20, members of the House and Senate Budget Committees met to begin work on a unified budget resolution for fiscal year 2016. Under regular order, the House and Senate Budget Committees meet each year after passing separate budgets to design a unified budget for the upcoming fiscal year. In the most recent years, these conferences have either not occurred or have not resulted in a final budget due to partisan impasses.
The final budget passed by this conference committee will not become law – instead it will serve as a guide for federal spending for the members of the Appropriations Committees to use as they draft their funding bills for FY 2016. This year with the Republicans in control of the House and Senate, the final budget will likely be focused on their principals and objectives. “We all know that a budget is more than just a set of numbers.” House Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price (R-GA) said in an opening statement at the beginning of the conference. “It is a reflection of our priorities, of our vision for the future. When done in a responsible way, it can provide a foundation for moving our country in the direction of more opportunity, economic growth and a safer and more secure nation.”
NAHMA will monitor the work of this conference committee and will update members with the final budget when it is released.