Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): FY2012 Appropriations

Maggie McCarty, Coordinator
Specialist in Housing Policy

Libby Perl
Specialist in Housing Policy

Eugene Boyd
Analyst in Federalism and Economic Development Policy

Katie Jones
Analyst in Housing Policy

Bruce E. Foote
Analyst in Housing Policy

The President’s FY2012 budget was released on February 14, 2011. It included a request for nearly $47.8 billion in gross new appropriations for HUD in FY2012. After accounting for rescissions of prior-year unobligated balances and offsets available from the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgage insurance programs, the President’s request for net new budget authority for HUD in FY2012 totals just over $41.7 billion. The President’s budget, which was released prior to enactment of a final FY2011 appropriations law, included proposals for some funding increases relative to FY2010 (Section 8 Tenant-Based Rental Assistance and Project- Based Rental Assistance), and some funding decreases relative to FY2010 (public housing operating fund, Community Development Block Grant program, HOME, and Section 202 and 811). However, in the case of almost all of the programs proposed for funding decreases relative to FY2010, the President’s requested amount was higher than what was provided in the FY2011 appropriations law. In total, the President’s funding request for HUD would result in a nearly $2.5 billion increase in gross new appropriations in FY2012 relative to FY2011. However, because the President’s budget estimates a substantial increase (nearly $2 billion) in the amount of offsetting receipts available from the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) in FY2012 relative to FY2011, the net budget authority requested in the President’s budget would represent an increase of only about $600 million in FY2012 relative to FY2011.

While the House Appropriations Committee has not formally reported an FY2012 Transportation, HUD, and Related Agencies (THUD) bill, on September 7, 2011, the THUD subcommittee released a draft version, including, according to the committee’s press statements, about $3 billion less for HUD than was provided in FY2011. It was approved by the subcommittee the next day. On September 21, 2011, the Senate Appropriations Committee reported its FY2012 THUD funding bill (S. 1596). It includes about $1.3 billion less in regular appropriations for HUD than was provided in FY2011.

On November 1, 2011, the Senate approved S.Amdt. 738 to H.R. 2112, the so-called Senate “Minibus.” It includes FY2011 appropriations for those agencies under the jurisdiction of the THUD subcommittee (reflecting S. 1596) as well as two other subcommittees (Agriculture and Commerce-Justice-Science). Several HUD-related amendments were considered and adopted.

Since final FY2012 appropriations were not enacted before the end of FY2011, Congress has enacted a series of continuing resolutions to maintain funding for government activities. The current CR, P.L. 112-36, funds most accounts, including all of HUD’s accounts, through November 18, 2011, at FY2011 levels, reduced by 1.503%.

While not directly affecting HUD funding, the provisions in the Budget Control Act of 2011 (P.L. 112-25) relating to statutory discretionary budget caps and their enforcement through sequestration could have implications for the amount of funding available for HUD in FY2012 (see the Appendix for more information).


Date of Report: November 2, 2011
Number of Pages: 29
Order Number: R41700
Price: $29.95

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