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

The President’s FY2012 budget was released on February 14, 2011. It included a request for nearly $47.9 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 totaled just over $42 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 ultimately provided in the FY2011 appropriations law. In total, the President’s funding request for HUD would have resulted in a nearly $2.5 billion increase in gross new appropriations in FY2012 relative to FY2011. However, because the President’s budget estimated a substantial increase (nearly $2 billion) in the amount of offsetting receipts available from FHA in FY2012 relative to FY2011, the net budget authority requested in the President’s budget would have represented an increase of only about $600 million in FY2012 relative to FY2011.

While the House Appropriations Committee did not formally report an FY2012 Transportation, HUD, and Related Agencies (THUD) bill, on September 7, 2011, the THUD subcommittee released a draft version, including about $3 billion less in net funding for HUD than was provided in FY2011 (about $1.4 billion less in gross appropriations). 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 included about $4 billion less in net funding for HUD than was provided in FY2011 (about $1.3 billion less in gross regular appropriations). On November 1, 2011, the full Senate approved S.Amdt. 738 to H.R. 2112, the so-called Senate “Minibus.” It included FY2012 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.

In mid-November, the House and Senate reported a conference agreement on the Minibus (H.R. 2112, H.Rept. 112-284), which was subsequently enacted by Congress and then signed into law by the President on November 18, 2011 (P.L. 112-55). The final FY2012 appropriations law provided about $37.3 billion in net funding for HUD, which is about 9% less than was provided in FY2011. However, part of the decrease in net funding is attributable to increases in offsetting receipts and rescission. Looking only at gross appropriations, total funding for HUD’s programs was decreased by about 2%.

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 and the future (see the Appendix for more information).


Date of Report: December 9, 2011
Number of Pages: 37
Order Number: R41700
Price: $29.95

Follow us on TWITTER at http://www.twitter.com/alertsPHP or #CRSreports

Document available via e-mail as a pdf file or in paper form.
To order, e-mail Penny Hill Press or call us at 301-253-0881. Provide a Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover card number, expiration date, and name on the card. Indicate whether you want e-mail or postal delivery. Phone orders are preferred and receive priority processing.