Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) cheered the increase in funding for affordable housing and HIV/AIDS housing included within the FY2010 Transportation-HUD Appropriations Act, which is expected to pass the House later today. Nadler, joined by colleagues and the leadership of the Appropriations Committee, fought successfully to increase funding for these essential and chronically underfunded programs. The bill now contains significantly more funding for housing programs than last year, including: $18 billion for tenant-based rental assistance; $8.7 billion for project-based rental assistance; $75 million for 10,000 Section 8 vouchers for homeless veterans; and, $350 million for the Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS (HOPWA) program.


“This funding increase for housing for our most vulnerable citizens is a great victory for all of us, and I applaud Chairman Olver for his efforts to secure these badly needed resources,” said Nadler. “Year after year, I have fought for more funding for affordable housing and for HOPWA. It is reassuring that, particularly now, in this time of tremendous economic hardship for those who are low-income, elderly or HIV-positive, we have successfully allocated more precious funding for housing. As we all should remember, quality housing is not a luxury but a right and a necessity.”

Nadler issued the following statement, as written, on the House floor:

“Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the Transportation-HUD Appropriations Act. I want to thank Chairman Olver for securing more than $18 billion for tenant-based rental assistance and $8.7 billion for project-based rental assistance. This represents $3.7 billion more than last year. This should be enough to fully fund the renewal of Section 8 Tenant-Based and Project-Based Rental Assistance and provide $75 million for 10,000 new, “incremental” tenant-based vouchers for homeless veterans. The bill also has $350 million for the Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS program – also known as HOPWA – which is $50 million more than was appropriated last year. This is a great victory for these programs and I applaud the Chairman and the Committee for their efforts to secure these badly needed resources.

“I also want to thank my colleagues who signed on to my letter to the Committee in support of increases for Section 8 housing and the HOPWA program earlier in the year. For many years, our letters were ignored and we were forced to come to the floor and offer amendments to increase funding for Section 8 Housing and HOPWA, where, more often than not, we were successful at passing funding increases to these programs. I am pleased that, this year, thanks to the good work of the Chairman, it was not necessary for us to come to the floor with an amendment.

“But I do want to recognize that the need for housing will still greatly outpace the supply. During this time of economic recession, much more needs to be done. I understand the Financial Services Committee is working on legislation to reform the Section 8 program and authorize 150,000 additional new vouchers, and I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass that legislation so that we can more properly address the severe housing crisis by substantially increasing funding for vouchers.

“Similarly, while we requested $360 million this year for the HOPWA program, $350 million of which is appropriated in this bill, the National AIDS Housing Coalition estimates that over $3.2 billion is required to truly meet the housing needs of all those living with HIV/AIDS.

“While we could always do more when it comes to funding for Section 8 and HOPWA, I recognize that it is no small feat to increase funding for Section 8 by $3.7 billion in a single year, and increasing funding for HOPWA to $350 million. I commend the Chairman for his leadership and I want to thank him for his continued support for these important housing initiatives. Thank you.”