Members of Congress adjourned for August recess on July 27 – a day earlier than expected – after it became apparent that attempts to bring the fiscal year (FY) 2024 Agriculture, Rural Development and Food and Drug Administration spending bill to the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives for a vote would be futile. The U.S. Senate will now be in recess until September 5, while the House will be in recess until September 12.
Far-right members of the House Freedom Caucus are demanding steeper cuts to the House’s already austere funding levels for FY24, a proposition that would draw ire from Democrats and some moderate Republicans in the chamber and that would fail to pass the Senate. Meanwhile, in a show of bipartisanship, the Senate Committee on Appropriations completed its review of all 12 spending bills for FY24 with bipartisan support. Senate Appropriations Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) and Vice Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) have also pledged to enact a supplemental spending measure to help offset the restrictive funding caps put in place by the debt ceiling deal (see Memo, 6/5).
The discrepancies between the House and Senate appropriations bills hint at what will likely be a tumultuous September on Capitol Hill. Congress has only until September 30 – the start of the new federal fiscal year – to enact all 12 appropriations bills or pass a continuing resolution (CR) in order to keep the federal government funded and avoid a shutdown. However, given the significant differences between the House and Senate FY24 spending bills, and given that far-right members of the House are indicating their unwillingness to vote for a clean CR that does not cut federal spending, members are raising alarms about a likely government shutdown on October 1.
While advocates across the country have done tremendous work to ensure that neither the House nor Senate FY24 spending bills drastically cut funding for vital HUD programs, including rental assistance and Homeless Assistance Grants, the road to enacting a final FY24 spending bill with sufficient HUD funding is steep. With members of Congress back in their home states and districts, August recess is the perfect time for advocates to set up in-district meetings with their members to stress the importance of increased HUD funding in any final appropriations bill.
Take Action
Thanks to the hard work of advocates across the country, who mobilized to weigh in with their elected officials, HUD’s vital rental assistance, homelessness assistance, and tribal housing programs were spared from cuts in both the House and Senate bills. Yet we still have work to do to ensure these funding levels remain in a final bill, and that other critical programs, such as Public Housing, are also fully funded.
Keep making your voice heard, and tell Congress that it cannot balance the federal budget at the expense of people with the lowest incomes! Advocates can take action TODAY in the following ways:
- Contact your senators and representatives to urge them to expand – not cut – investments in affordable, accessible homes through the FY24 spending bill!
- August recess is the perfect time for advocates to schedule in-district meetings with their members of Congress to urge them to support higher funding for affordable housing and homelessness programs. Check out NLIHC’s updated Congressional Recess Toolkit for information on how to set up in-district meetings, meeting tips, talking points, and more!
- Join over 2,000 organizations by signing on to a national letter from the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding (CHCDF), calling on Congress to oppose budget cuts and instead to support the highest level of funding possible for affordable housing, homelessness, and community development resources in FY24.
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