CDBG brings $3.3 Billion in federal funding to support infrastructure, housing construction, and public safety for Americans living in over 1,200 cities
Washington, DC — This week, the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) and bipartisan mayors from across the country are urging members of the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD) to reject any proposals that would eliminate or reduce funding for the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
CDBG is a $3.3 Billion program that distributes funds supporting Americans in over 1,200 cities, large and small. The program plays a vital role in bolstering local infrastructure investments, economic development, housing construction projects, and public safety programs. The THUD Subcommittee is scheduled to markup HUD’s 2026 fiscal year appropriations bill today.
First enacted in 1974 under the leadership of Republican President Gerald Ford, CDBG has enjoyed bipartisan support across nine presidential administrations and has been championed by both Democratic- and Republican-controlled Congresses. If CDBG were to be eliminated, Americans in all 50 states would face immediate negative impacts. Last year, THUD Subcommittee Chairman Steve Womack (R-AR) defended CDBG, stating that “CDBG supports decision-making at the local level to meet critical economic development needs.”
In particular, the CDBG program is critical to ongoing efforts at the local level to address the nation’s housing affordability crisis. CDBG has provided safe and affordable housing to more than 2.1 million households since FY 2005. USCM recently released a survey that found a majority of mayors see changes to federal housing program funding like CDGB as having a major to severe impact on their ability to develop affordable housing in their cities.
“CDBG is the primary tool used in local communities to revitalize low and moderate-income neighborhoods and serve the people who live in them,” said USCM President Oklahoma City (OK) Mayor David Holt (R). “Because of its unique reliance on local decision-making, CDBG has proven to be highly efficient and effective. At a time when federal deficits understandably loom large, Congress should prioritize programs that work. CDBG funding works. It’s transparent and cost-effective, putting taxpayer dollars to work in communities across America. That’s why CDBG has become one of Washington’s best bipartisan success stories for half a century. The nation’s mayors urge Congress to keep it that way.”