[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12204]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1215
 DEVASTATING FUNDING CUTS TO COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM

  (Mr. HIGGINS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. HIGGINS. Mr. Speaker, the 2014 Transportation, Housing and Urban 
Development appropriations bill, which is currently awaiting 
consideration on the House floor, has a devastating 50 percent cut to 
the Community Development Block Grant program. These grants provide 
eligible communities with funding to increase economic activity and 
create jobs.
  Many regions, including western New York, have benefited from the 
availability of Community Development Block Grants to support 
neighborhood reinvestment, affordable housing, and economic 
development.
  Mr. Speaker, this program has a strong history of bipartisan support 
since its creation by President Gerald Ford in 1974. Shamefully, the 
amount funded this year is actually $1 billion less than what was 
allocated to the program 39 years ago.
  I'm proud to have joined over 100 of my House colleagues to express 
concern with this funding cut and urge Community Development Block 
Grant funding to be fully restored. These cuts, that come at the 
expense of our local communities, would have a negative impact on the 
national economy.

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