Key Democrats on the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee are trying to get answers from the Trump administration on how its intended federal aid freeze could or has affected federal housing programs.
In a letter obtained by NOTUS, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the ranking member of the committee, and Sen. Tina Smith, the ranking member of a subcommittee focused on housing, requested more information about which Housing and Urban Development programs were part of the freeze.
“Congress and the public need answers on how your Administration’s reckless actions have and will affect Americans that rely on HUD programs, grants, and loans to buy or rent a home,” wrote the senators.
They went on to criticize the lack of clarity around the funding freeze, part of the Trump administration’s broader efforts to scale down the size of government.
“Due to the haphazard nature and rollout of the memo, state and local employees, nonprofits, and countless others have wasted time and resources trying to understand if they would have the funds they were promised to break ground on new affordable housing or finish making a home safe from lead paint for a family with children,” the senators wrote in the letter.
The letter, addressed to President Donald Trump and the acting HUD secretary, included several questions trying to distinguish which programs, “if any,” are currently captured by a freeze, and what “criteria” the programs would need to meet to resume operations. The senators requested answers by Sunday.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment asking which HUD programs were intended to be part of the federal aid freeze.
The future of the White House spending review is unclear. On Wednesday, the White House rescinded its order to freeze federal aid, even as the White House press secretary argued on social media it was “NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze.” The initial directive from the Office of Management and Budget was set to take effect on Tuesday, but a federal judge stepped in at the last minute to block it temporarily.
The administration’s original guidance prompted confusion and anxiety among Democrats and housing advocates earlier this week over the future of HUD programs.
Warren and Smith also asked whether the White House plans to issue another memo, and “if so, how will this memo affect HUD programs?”
Meanwhile, Scott Turner is under consideration to be the secretary of HUD. Turner, who is little known among housing advocates, has been voted out of the banking committee on a party line vote and is on track to get a full Senate vote.
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Amelia Benavides-Colón is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.