The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the secretary of housing and urban development, who reports directly to the

president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

and is a member of the president's Cabinet. Although its beginnings were in the House and Home Financing Agency, it was founded as a Cabinet department in 1965, as part of the "

Great Society The Great Society was a series of domestic programs enacted by President Lyndon B. Johnson in the United States between 1964 and 1968, aimed at eliminating poverty, reducing racial injustice, and expanding social welfare in the country. Johnso ...

" program of President

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

, to develop and execute policies on housing and metropolises.

History

The idea of a department of Urban Affairs was proposed in a 1957 report to President Dwight D. Eisenhower, led by New York governor Nelson A. Rockefeller. The idea of a department of Housing and Urban Affairs was taken up by President John F. Kennedy, with Pennsylvania Senator and Kennedy ally Joseph S. Clark Jr. listing it as one of the top seven legislative priorities for the administration in internal documents. The department was established on September 9, 1965, when President

signed the Department of Housing and Urban Development Act into law. It stipulated that the department was to be created no later than November 8, sixty days following the date of enactment. The actual implementation was postponed until January 14, 1966, following the completion of a special study group report on the federal role in solving urban problems. HUD is administered by the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Its headquarters is located in the Robert C. Weaver Federal Building. Some important milestones for HUD's development include: * June 27, 1934 – The National Housing Act creates the

Federal Housing Administration The Federal Housing Administration (FHA), also known as the Office of Housing within the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), is a Independent agencies of the United States government, United States government agency founded by Pr ...

, which helps provide mortgage insurance on loans made by FHA-approved lenders. * September 1, 1937 – Housing Act of 1937 creates the U.S. Housing Authority, which helps enact

slum clearance Slum clearance, slum eviction or slum removal is an urban renewal strategy used to transform low-income settlements with poor reputation into another type of development or housing. This has long been a strategy for redeveloping urban communities; ...

projects and construction of low-rent housing. * February 3, 1938 – The National Housing Act Amendments of 1938 is signed into law. The law creates the

Federal National Mortgage Association The Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), commonly known as Fannie Mae, is a United States government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) and, since 1968, a publicly traded company. Founded in 1938 during the Great Depression as part of the Ne ...

(FNMA), which provides a secondary market to the

. * February 24, 1942 – Executive Order 9070, Establishing the

National Housing Agency The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the secretary of housing and u ...

. The Federal Housing Administration, the Federal Home Loan Bank Board, The Home Owners' Loan Corporation, The United States Housing Authority, defense housing under the Federal Works Agency, the War Department, the Navy Department, the Farm Security Administration, the Defense Homes Corporation, the Federal Loan Administration, and the Division of Defense Housing Coordination were consolidated. The National Housing Agency would be made up of three units, each with its own commissioner. The units were the Federal Housing Administration, the Federal Home Loan Bank Administration, and the United States Housing Authority. * July 27, 1947 – The

Housing and Home Finance Agency The Housing and Home Finance Agency (HHFA) was responsible for the principal housing programs of the United States from 1947 to 1965. It was superseded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and preceded by the National Housing A ...

is established through

Reorganization Plan Number 3 A corporate action is an event initiated by a public company that brings or could bring an actual change to the debt securities— equity or debt—issued by the company. Corporate actions are typically agreed upon by a company's board of dire ...

. * July 15, 1949 – The

Housing Act of 1949 The American Housing Act of 1949 () was a landmark, sweeping expansion of the federal role in mortgage insurance and issuance and the construction of public housing. It was part of President of the United States, President Harry Truman's program ...

is enacted to help eradicate slums and promote community development and redevelopment programs. * August 2, 1954 – The

Housing Act of 1954 The ''Housing Act of 1954'', , passed during the Dwight D. Eisenhower Administration, comprised a series of amendments to the National Housing Act of 1934. Referred to within the legislation simply as the "National Housing Act", the program was m ...

establishes comprehensive planning assistance. * September 23, 1959 – The

Housing Act of 1959 Housing refers to a property containing one or more shelter as a living space. Housing spaces are inhabited either by individuals or a collective group of people. Housing is also referred to as a human need and human right, playing a cri ...

allows funds for elderly housing. * September 2, 1964 – The Housing Act of 1964 allows rehabilitation loans for homeowners. * August 10, 1965 – The Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965 instituted several major expansions in federal housing programs. * September 1965 – HUD is created as a cabinet-level agency by the Department of Housing and Urban Development Act. * April 1968 – The

Fair Housing Act The Civil Rights Act of 1968 () is a Lists of landmark court decisions, landmark law in the United States signed into law by President of the United States, United States President Lyndon B. Johnson during the King assassination riots. Titles ...

is passed to ban discrimination in housing. * During 1968 – The Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 establishes the

Government National Mortgage Association The Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA), or Ginnie Mae, is a government-owned corporation of the United States Federal Government within the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). It was founded in 1968 and works to expa ...

(Ginnie Mae). * August 1969 – The Brooke Amendment establishes that low income families only pay no more than 25 percent of their income for rent. * August 1974 – Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 allows community development

block grant A block grant is a grant-in-aid of a specified amount from a larger government to a smaller regional government body. Block grants have less oversight from the larger government and provide flexibility to each subsidiary government body in terms ...

s and help for urban homesteading. * October 1977 – The Housing and Community Act of 1977 sets up Urban Development Grants and continues elderly and handicapped assistance. * July 1987 – The Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act gives help to communities to deal with homelessness. It includes the creation of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness of which HUD is a member. * February 1988 – The Housing and Community Development Act provides for the sale of public housing to resident management corporations. * October 1992 – The HOPE VI program starts to revitalize public housing and how it works. * October 1992 – The Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 codifies within its language the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992 that creates the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, and mandates HUD to set goals for lower income and underserved housing areas for the GSEs

Fannie Mae The Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), commonly known as Fannie Mae, is a United States government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) and, since 1968, a publicly traded company. Founded in 1938 during the Great Depression as part of the New ...

and

Freddie Mac The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC), commonly known as Freddie Mac, is an American publicly traded, government-sponsored enterprise (GSE), headquartered in Tysons, Virginia.budget sequestration in 2013 A budget is a calculation plan, usually but not always financial, for a defined period, often one year or a month. A budget may include anticipated sales volumes and revenues, resource quantities including time, costs and expenses, environm ...

Agencies

Offices

* Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships (HUD) * Departmental Enforcement Center * Office of Community Planning and Development * Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations * Office of Equal Employment Opportunit

*

Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity An office is a space where the employees of an organization perform administrative work in order to support and realize the various goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific du ...

* Office of Field Policy and Management * Office of the General Counsel * Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control * Office of Hearings and Appeals * Office of Labor Relations * Office of Policy Development and Research * Office of Public Affairs * Office of Public and Indian Housing * Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization * Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities

Corporation

* Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae)

Organizational structure

Major programs

The major program offices are: * Community Planning and Development: Many major affordable housing and homelessness programs are administered under Community Planning and Development. These include the

Community Development Block Grant The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), one of the longest-running programs of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, funds local community development activities with the stated goal of providing affordable housing, anti- ...

s (CDBG), the HOME program, Shelter Plus Care, Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG), Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation Single Room Occupancy program (Mod Rehab SRO), and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA). * Housing: This office is responsible for the

; mission regulation of

and

Freddie Mac The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC), commonly known as Freddie Mac, is an American publicly traded, government-sponsored enterprise (GSE), headquartered in Tysons, Virginia.manufactured housing; administration of multifamily housing programs, including Supportive Housing for the Elderly (Section 202) and Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities (Section 811); Project-Based Section 8 and healthcare facility loan insurance. * Public and Indian Housing: This office administers the public housing program HOPE VI, the Housing Choice Voucher Program (formerly yet more popularly known as Section 8), Project-Based Vouchers, and individual loan programs housing block grants for Native American tribes, Native Hawaiians and Alaskans. *

: This office enforces federal laws against discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status. * Policy Development and Research (PD&R): This office is responsible for maintaining current information on housing needs, market conditions, and existing programs, as well as conducting research on priority housing and community development issues through the HUD USER Clearinghouse. *

, or Ginnie Mae * Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control * Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing, developed in 1998

Office of Inspector General

The

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

enacted the Inspector General Act of 1978 to ensure integrity and efficiency in government. The Inspector General is appointed by the President and subject to Senate confirmation. He or she is responsible for conducting and supervising

audit An audit is an "independent examination of financial information of any entity, whether profit oriented or not, irrespective of its size or legal form when such an examination is conducted with a view to express an opinion thereon." Auditing al ...

s, investigations, and inspections relating to the programs and operations of HUD. The OIG is to examine, evaluate and, where necessary, critique these operations and activities, recommending ways for the department to carry out its responsibilities in the most effective, efficient, and economical manner possible. The mission of the Office of Inspector General (OIG) is to: * Promote the integrity, efficiency, and effectiveness of HUD programs and operations to assist the department in meeting its mission * Detect and prevent waste, fraud, and abuse * Seek administrative sanctions, civil recoveries, and/or criminal prosecution of those responsible for waste, fraud and abuse in HUD programs and operations The OIG accomplishes its mission by conducting investigations pertinent to its activities; by keeping Congress, the Secretary, and the public fully informed of its activities, and by working with staff (in this case of HUD) in achieving success of its objectives and goals. The Honorable Rae Oliver Davis, who was appointed on January 23, 2019, is the current Inspector General.

Budget and staffing

The Department of Housing and Urban Development was authorized a budget for Fiscal Year 2015 of $48.3 billion. The budget authorization is broken down as outlined in the following chart.

Criticisms

A scandal arose in the 1990s when at least 700 houses were sold for profit by real estate speculators taking the loans; at least 19 were arrested. The scandal devastated the

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

and

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

housing market, with $70 million in HUD loans going into default. Critics said that the department's lax oversight of their program allowed the fraud to occur. In 1997, the HUD Inspector General issued a report saying: "The program design encourages risky property deals, land sale, and refinance schemes, overstated property appraisals, and phony or excessive fees." In June 1993, HUD Secretary

Henry Cisneros Henry Gabriel Cisneros (born June 11, 1947) is an American politician and businessman. He served as the mayor of San Antonio, Texas, from 1981 to 1989, the second Latino mayor of a major American city and the city's first since 1842 (when Jua ...

admitted that "HUD has in many cases exacerbated the declining quality of life in America." In 1996, Vice President

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...

, referring to public housing projects, declared that, "These crime-infested monuments to a failed policy are killing the neighborhoods around them". HUD Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing Roberta Achtenberg has been quoted as saying "HUD walks a tightrope between free speech and fair housing. We are ever mindful of the need to maintain the proper balance between these rights."

Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

critic James Bovard commented that, "The more aggressive HUD becomes, the fewer free speech rights Americans have. Many words and phrases are now effectively forbidden in real estate ads... Apparently, there are two separate versions of the Bill of Rights -- one for private citizens and the other for federal bureaucrats and politicians". In 2006, ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...

'' named HUD "New York City's worst landlord" and "the #1 worst in the United States" based upon decrepit conditions of buildings and questionable

eviction Eviction is the removal of a Tenement (law), tenant from leasehold estate, rental property by the landlord. In some jurisdictions it may also involve the removal of persons from premises that were foreclosure, foreclosed by a mortgagee (often ...

practices. In September 2010, HUD started auctioning off delinquent home mortgage loans, defined as at least 90 days past due, to the highest bidder. It sold 2,000 loans in six national auctions. In 2012, this sale was massively increased under a "Distressed Asset Stabilization Program" (DASP), and the 100,000 loans sold as of 2014 have netted $8.8 billion for the FHA, rebuilding cash reserves that had been depleted by loan defaults. The second stated and eponymous objective is to stabilize communities, by requiring purchasers to service the loans in a manner that stabilizes the surrounding communities by getting the loans to re-perform, renting the home to the borrower, gifting the property to a land bank or paying off the loans in full. An audit published August 2014 found "only about 11 percent of the loans sold through DASP

ere Ere or ERE may refer to: * ''Environmental and Resource Economics'', a peer-reviewed academic journal * ERE Informatique, one of the first French video game companies * Ere language, an Austronesian language * Ebi Ere (born 1981), American-Nigeria ...

considered 're-performing'". "Rather than defaulting— HAkeeps many of the properties they’re tied to from going through the typical foreclosure process. As a result, the FHA might actually be diverting housing stock from first-time homebuyers, the very group it was formed to serve..."

Related legislation

* 1944 – Servicemen's Readjustment Act, * 1949 – Housing Act, * 1950 – Housing Act, * 1951 – Defense Housing Act, * 1952 – 550 Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act, * 1954 – Housing Act, * 1959 – Housing Act, * 1962 – Senior Citizens Housing Act, * 1965 – Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965, * 1965 – Department of Housing and Urban Development Act, * 1968 – Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968, * 1974 – Housing and Urban Development Act, * 1976 – Housing and Urban Development Act, * 1986 –

Tax Reform Act of 1986 The Tax Reform Act of 1986 (TRA) was passed by the 99th United States Congress and signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on October 22, 1986. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 was the top domestic priority of President Reagan's second term. The ...

, ** Low-Income Housing Tax Credit * 1987 – Housing and Community Development Act of 1987, * 1987 – Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, * 1989 – Department of Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 1989, * 1989
H.R.2916 - Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, Independent Agencies Appropriations Act
1990, * 1990 – Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act, * 1992 – Housing and Community Development Act of 1992, ** Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992, * 2009 –

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) (), nicknamed the Recovery Act, was a Stimulus (economics), stimulus package enacted by the 111th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in February 2009. Developed ...

, abbreviated ARRA, ** Repairing and modernizing public housing, including increasing the energy efficiency of units, $4 billion to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

Notes

References

External links

*
HUD
on

USAspending.gov USAspending.gov is a database of spending by the United States federal government. History Around the time of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006's passage, OMB Watch, a government watchdog group, was developing a ...

HUD
in the

Federal Register The ''Federal Register'' (FR or sometimes Fed. Reg.) is the government gazette, official journal of the federal government of the United States that contains government agency rules, proposed rules, and public notices. It is published every wee ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:United States Department Of Housing And Urban Development 1965 establishments in Washington, D.C. Public housing in the United States Urban planning in the United States

Housing Housing refers to a property containing one or more Shelter (building), shelter as a living space. Housing spaces are inhabited either by individuals or a collective group of people. Housing is also referred to as a human need and right to ...

Real estate in the United States Government agencies established in 1965 Housing ministries Urban development ministries

History

Agencies

Agencies

Offices

Corporation

Organizational structure

Major programs

Office of Inspector General

Budget and staffing

Criticisms

Related legislation

See also

Notes

References

External links