Legislative History of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
The following summarizes the history of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, including the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.
The early post-Great Depression legislative measures from 1932 – 1938 stimulated housing construction in the U.S.
Emergency Relief and Reconstruction Act of 1932
P.L. 75 – 432
First major U.S. relief legislation.
Passed by Congress amidst widespread unemployment and financial collapse resulting from the 1929 Stock Market Crash and the ensuing Great Depression.
Created the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) and authorized loans to private corporations providing housing for low-income families.
National Housing Act of 1934
P.L. 84 – 345
Passed to relieve unemployment and stimulate the release of private credit in the hands of banks and lending institutions for home repairs and constructions as the Great Depression eased and the prospect for improved financial status for individual families increased.
Created the Federal Housing Administration (FHA)
Main federal agency handling mortgage insurance for loans made by banks and other private lenders for homebuilding.
United States Housing Act of 1937 (Wagner-Steagall Act)
P.L. 75 – 412
Established the U.S. Housing Authority (USHA) within the U.S. Department of the Interior to be responsible for building publicly subsidized housing. The USHA:
Provided for subsidies to be paid from the U.S. government to local “Public Housing Agencies” (PHA) to improve living conditions for low-income families;
Authorized loans to PHAs for lower-rent public housing construction expenses; and
Required that for each new public housing unit created, a unit of substandard quality must be removed.
1938: Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) was chartered.
A government-sponsored enterprise to expand the secondary mortgage market by securitizing mortgages in the form of mortgage-backed securities, allowing lenders to reinvest their assets into more lending and increase the number of lenders in the mortgage market by reducing the reliance on locally based savings and loan associations.
Note: Is the sister organization of the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) (founded in 1970).
United States Housing Act of 1949
P.L. 81 – 171 (Title V)
Part of the “Fair Deal” legislation and set new post-war national goals for decent living environment by expanding the federal governments role in mortgage insurance and the construction and issuance of public housing. As a result, it funded “slum clearance,” urban renewal projects, and created many national housing programs.
Civil Rights Act of 1964
P.L. 88 – 352 (Title VI)
Prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance.
Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965
P.L. 89 – 117
Establishes United States Department of Housing and Urban Development as a Cabinet-level agency – consolidating the Public Housing Administration, U.S. Housing Authority, and House and Home Financing Agency.
Expanded funding for existing federal housing programs and added new federal housing programs to provide:
Rent subsidies for the elderly and individuals with a disability;
Housing rehabilitation grants to low-income homeowners;
Provisions for veterans to make very low down-payments to obtain mortgages;
New authority for families qualifying for public housing to be placed in empty private housing (along with subsidies to landlords); and
Matching grants to localities for the construction of water and sewer facilities, construction of community centers in low-income areas, and urban beautification.
Fair Housing Act of 1968 (Civil Rights Act of 1968)
P.L. 90 – 284
Accords HUD enforcement authority to prevent discrimination in federal housing programs.
Architectural Barriers Act of 1968
P.L. 90 – 480
Requires that buildings and facilities designed, constructed, altered, or leased with federal funds must be accessible to and useable by handicapped persons.
Housing and Urban Development Act of 1970
P.L. 91 – 609
Introduces Federal Experimental Housing Allowance Program and Community Development Corporation.
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504)
P.L. 93 – 112 (Section 504)
Prohibits discrimination based on disability in any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.
Housing and Community Development Act of 1974
P.L. 93-383
Establishes the Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG), which requires that each CDBG Program activity funded must meet one of three objectives:
Benefit low- and moderate-income persons,
Aid in the prevention or elimination of slums or blights, or
Meet an urgent need.
CDBG Program areas:
- Entitled Communities Program: Allocates annual grants to larger cities and urban counties to develop viable communities by providing decent housing, a suitable living environment, and opportunities to expand economic opportunities for low- and moderate-income persons.
- Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program: CDBG Entitlement Communities are eligible to apply for assistance through the Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program.
- State Administered Small Cities Program: States award grants to smaller units of local government that carry out community development activities.
- HUD Administered Small Cities Program: The HUD Honolulu Office directly administers the CDBG Program for non-entitlement communities in Hawaii.
- Insular Areas Program: Provides flexible grant to American Samoa, Guam, Northern Marianna Islands, and Virgin Islands.
- Neighborhood Stabilization Program: Provides grants to communities hardest hit by foreclosures and delinquencies to purchase, rehabilitate or redevelop homes, and stabilize neighborhoods.
- Colonias Program: Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California provide up to 10% of their state CDBG Program funds for improving living conditions for colonias residents.
- Disaster Recovery Assistance Program (CDBG-DR): Provides flexible grants to help cities, counties, and states recover from presidentially-declared disasters, especially in low-income areas to rebuild affected areas and bring necessary seed money to stimulate the recovery process and supplement existing federal recovery programs.
Note: Primary statutory authority permitting HUD and other federal agencies to assist state and local governments with their response and recovery responsibilities following major disasters and emergencies are subject to the requirements of the Stafford Act as well.
Age Discrimination Act of 1975
P.L. 94 – 135
Prohibits the discrimination on the basis of age in programs of activities receiving federal financial assistance.
Housing and Urban-Rural Recovery Act of 1983
P.L. 98 – 181
Begins Housing Development Action Grant and Rental Rehabilitation programs.
Housing and Community Development Act of 1988
P.L. 100 – 242
Authorizes the sale of public housing to resident management corporations.
Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988
P.L. 100-430
Makes it easier for victims of discrimination to sue and stiffens penalties for offenders.
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Title II)
P.L. 101-336 (Title II)
Provides HUD enforcement authority to prohibits discrimination based on disability in programs, services, and activities provided or made available by public entities.
National Affordable Housing Act of 1990
P.L. 101-625
Emphasizes tenant-based assistance and launches HOME housing block grants.
Low-Income Housing Preservation and Residential Homeownership Act of 1990
P.L. 100-242
Fortifies the federal governments commitment to the preservation of assisted low-income multifamily housing.
Federal Housing Enterprises’ Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992
Creates HUD Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight to provide public oversight of FNMA and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac).
1993 – Empowerment Zone and Enterprise Community Program becomes law as part of the “Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993.”
1998 – Congress approves public housing reforms to reduce segregation by race and income, encourage and reward work, bring more working families into public housing, and increase the availability of subsidized housing for very poor families.