Cleaver, Waters, Lead Call to Protect Rural Housing Funding in Congress

(Washington, D.C.) – As Congress begins the appropriations process to determine funding levels for federal programs, U.S. Representative Emanuel Cleaver, II (D-MO), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance, and Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Financial Services, are leading dozens of lawmakers in a call to protect federal funding for rural housing programs under the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In a letter to House Committee on Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK), Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee Chairman Andy Harris (R-MD), and Subcommittee Ranking Member Sanford Bishop (D-GA), the lawmakers are calling on Congress to provide robust funding to the Rural Development Voucher Program, Housing Rehabilitation and Preservation, and the Section 521 Rental Assistance Program.

“Rural America is home to nearly 70 million people, or 20% of the U.S. population, who like the rest of the country are struggling with an aging housing stock, undersupply challenges, rising rents, and worsening homelessness,” the lawmakers wrote. “Federally funded housing programs through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) are often some of the only sources of affordable housing solutions in rural areas. Unfortunately, it has been reported that USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins and the Trump Administration have plans to significantly cut staffing within the agency by at least 30%.”

“However, as Democrats and Republicans alike have pointed out over the years, USDA’s role in addressing the unique housing needs of rural America cannot be overstated,” the lawmakers continued. “To address the growing housing needs in rural America, we urge you to consider the funding and programmatic requests for USDA’s Rural Housing Service (RHS), as outlined in this letter.”

Specific funding and policy requests supported by the lawmakers include:

• Providing Robust Funding and Targeted Reforms to the Rural Development Voucher Program (RDVP), including language that supports full funding for Rural Development Voucher renewals in FY 2026 and extends eligibility for RDVP to Section 514 and 515 properties when mortgage loans for those properties mature.
• Providing Robust Funding for Housing Rehabilitation and Preservation, including a request to maintain USDA’s Rural Housing Service’s continued authority to decouple Section 521 RA from Section 515 loans to support the rehabilitation and preservation of affordable multifamily housing in rural communities. Additionally, the lawmakers request that Congress provide $200 million for the Section 515 program, $75 million for the Section 514 program, $35 million for the Section 516 Farm Labor Housing Grant program, and $1 billion for the Multifamily Preservation & Revitalization Demonstration Program to invest in the rehabilitation of aging rural properties.
• Fully Fund the Section 521 Rental Assistance Program, including the renewal of assistance to all cost-burdened low-income families who currently rely on this assistance to remain stably housed.

The official letter from Cleaver, Waters, and other lawmakers is available here.

Emanuel Cleaver, II is the U.S. Representative for Missouri's Fifth Congressional District, which includes Kansas City, Independence, Lee's Summit, Raytown, Grandview, Sugar Creek, Greenwood, Blue Springs, North Kansas City, Gladstone, and Claycomo. He is a member of the exclusive House Financial Services Committee and Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance.