Jerry Nadler: “this amendment will provide an additional 34,000 Section 8 vouchers, 10,000 of which will be reserved for disabled…”

“this amendment will provide an additional 34,000 Section 8 vouchers, 10,000 of which will be reserved for disabled families. In addition, the amendment would add almost $5 million to veterans' extended care facilities. I wish we could offer an amendment for a greater number of new vouchers, because the need is so great. Unfortunately, with such severe cuts to so many important housing programs necessitated by the budget resolution we passed earlier this year, it is difficult to find an offset that would provide the funds necessary to do so. We must focus the scarce resources in this bill on the areas of greatest need. Therefore, the amendment offsets the increase in funds for additional Section 8 vouchers and for the additional funding for veterans' extended care facilities by removing $200 million from the Down Payment Assistance Initiative which is an unauthorized part of the HOME program. By postponing appropriations for this initiative until it is actually authorized and until a number of concerns raised by local mayors regarding the structure of the program have been addressed, we will be able to use these funds immediately on chronically underfunded housing programs.”