Political Quotes

“I urge support for the Housing Opportunity Program Extenders Act of 1995. This legislation is designed to provide HUD and Farmers Home with authority to continue certain housing programs which are strongly supported by the American public. Most importantly, similar to the VA/HUD fiscal year 1996 appropriations bill, this bill would require HUD to renew expiring section 8 project-based contracts for fiscal year 1996 for 1 year at current rents. There are some 900,000 FHA-insured units with section 8 project-based assistance expiring over the next 10 years. Many of these section 8 contracts are oversubsidized under existing contracts and fiscal responsibility requires that Congress contain the spiraling costs associated with this inventory. Moreover, under a recent HUD legal opinion, HUD may renew these expiring section 8 project-based contracts at the market rent with some exceptions for contract rents up to 120 percent of the market rents; this means that these section 8 projects will begin to default and face foreclosure by HUD during fiscal year 1996. I believe it is critical that Congress reform and adjust the costs, including section 8 costs, of this assisted housing to the existing market rents.”