Addressing the Housing Crisis

Floor Speech

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Mr. STANTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with deep concerns about the Trump administration's policies that will increase homelessness in America.

Last week, in the middle of the funding cycle, HUD changed their Continuum of Care grant criteria, cutting funding for permanent support of housing by over 50 percent.

Local housing organizations will owe landlords rent checks on January 1 with no guarantee they will have the funds. Mr. Speaker, 170,000 of our fellow Americans will risk falling back into homelessness.

Before I served as mayor of Phoenix, I chaired Maricopa County's Continuum of Care. We put our funding where it made the biggest impact with proven and effective solutions like permanent supportive housing.

That model provides stability and access to support services while people get back on their feet. It helps some of our most vulnerable Americans, those with debilitating disabilities, keep a roof over their heads.

Mr. Speaker, behind every grant line item is a human being who has overcome great adversity to achieve stability. Trump's cuts will undo years of hard-won progress. These Americans deserve better from our government.

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