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WHEREAS, President Donald Trump released his proposed Fiscal Year 2018 budget plan the morning of Thursday, March 16, marking his administration’s intent to push for severe, austere cuts to numerous government programs supported through discretionary spending; and
WHEREAS, in addition to at least 20 percent cuts at the Departments of Agriculture, Labor, and State, multiple other departments and programs that provide vital support to the City of Pittsburgh are at risk of losing funding; and
WHEREAS, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) stands to lose 13.2 percent of its budget, including the complete elimination of the Community Development Block Grant program, from which the City of Pittsburgh receives close to $13 million annually to support affordable housing initiatives, provide operational assistance to at-risk communities, bolster workforce development programs, help maintain meal assistance work, and more; and
WHEREAS, other cuts to HUD include the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, which provides block grants for affordable housing, the Choice Neighborhoods program, used to replace distressed or public housing and encourages new neighborhood investment, the Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program, which funds nonprofit organizations working to produce new housing for low-income families, and the Section 4 Capacity Building for Community Development and Affordable Housing program, which works with nonprofit entities to fund community development initiatives; and
WHEREAS, the FY 2018 budget draft also cuts the Department of Health and Human Services’ Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which provides financial assistance to low-income families for use toward energy bills and energy-related home maintenance; and
WHEREAS, the proposed budget would completely eliminate 19 independent agencies, including the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation, the African Development Foundation, the Appalachian Regional Commission, the Corporation for National and Community Service, the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Legal Services Corporation; and
WHEREAS, President Trump’s proposed budget, if passed, would present grave consequences for the City of Pittsburgh and its residents by denying the City, its citizens, and countless projects already underway incredibly necessary funding that is dedicated to crucial operatic and programmatic initiatives; and
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NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh strongly opposes these draconian cuts that will adversely affect countless hardworking, everyday Pittsburghers; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh encourages the United States Congress to reject President Trump’s proposed budget in its current form.