Funding for the $1 billion Green and Resilient Retrofit Program, which helps preserve affordable housing, has been halted by the Trump Administration, according to an Associated Press report. The action comes amid a wide range of cuts and funding freezes impacting the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The program, passed by Congress in 2022, is viewed by some as a cornerstone of efforts to address the nation's housing crisis, the report said. It has awarded funding for upgrades to at least 25,000 affordable units across the country. How that funding will be unwound remains unclear, said AP.
Although HUD did not comment on the matter, AP said it obtained an internal document that indicates the program is being terminated under orders of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The program focuses on energy-efficient improvements and distributes grants and loans to affordable housing in need of updating and repairing heating and cooling systems, leaky roofs, aging insulation, and windows. Projects funded by the program are required to keep their buildings affordable for up to 25 years, said the report.
Mike Essian, VP of American Community Developers Inc., said the money was essential for getting projects to come together.
“Projects will fail and these are projects that are already difficult to finance,” Essian said.
One project that could be impacted by the freeze is the 170-unit Smith Tower Apartments in Vancouver, Washington. The building received a $10 million award to install a building-wide sprinkler system, a project that was cited in applications for other investments, according to the AP report.
The potential loss jeopardizes the building's ability to upgrade other systems that could make the building livable for another 60 years, said Greg Franks, president of the property’s management company.
Roughly two dozen projects are expected to receive scheduled funding, but others are in limbo, according to AP. The program provides funding for projects in 42 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.