The House Commmittee on Financial Services’ Housing and Insurance Subcommittee held an oversight hearing May 19 to examine the performance, challenges and budget priorities of the Rural Housing Service (RHS).
“Today’s hearing will allow those concerned with the future of housing, members of this subcommittee and people across rural America, to better understand the challenges facing rural housing and the opportunities to improve a system plagued with inefficiencies,” said Subcommittee Chairman Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO). “We continue to see throughout the nation an overwhelming need for affordable housing, and we need to ensure that RHS is doing everything in its power to fulfill that need.”
The House Committee on Financial Services identified in the following key take aways in a press release following the hearing:
- While the RHS has generally agreed to and made improvements aligned with recommendations from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), further action is required in certain areas
- Overlap among housing assistance programs shows an opportunity to streamline products that are offered and areas that are served.
- The RHS needs to take further actions to improve efficiency and oversight over its rental assistance and farm labor housing programs.
- The RHS still has room for improvement in complying with risk-management practices.
