Cardoza to HUD Secretary: Take a walk

WASHINGTON, D.C.
July 29, 2010 5:57am

Central Valley congressman Dennis Cardoza, whose district includes three of the nation’s hardest hit areas for foreclosures, says he wants to strip the travel budget from Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan because of the federal government’s response to the foreclosure tsunami.

“These programs are often poorly designed and inadequate,” says Mr. Cardoza, D-Merced. “We know from our constituents that this crisis is far from over.”

Roll Call, a newspaper devoted to the minutia and machinations of Congress, quotes Mr. Cardoza as saying he wants to keep Mr. Donovan’s “ass in Washington,” apparently not referring to any house pets.

Legislation to eliminate the HUD Secretary’s travel budget was be considered by the House of Representatives on Thursday. The amendment will be considered as part of the 2011 Fiscal Year appropriations bill for the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Department of Transportation.

The government programs and studies to solve the foreclosure crisis may look good on paper or from “10,000 feet above reality in Washington,” but they are doing nothing to help those in the Central Valley, says Mr. Cardoza.

He takes 
particular issue with the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). It seeks to assist homeowners avoid foreclosure by modifying their loans. The Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, recently found that only 31 percent of homes that were eligible for the program had been helped.

The GAO also found multiple concerns with the program, such as inconsistent treatment of borrowers, too few guidelines and limited tracking of complaints.

“The on-going foreclosure crisis remains one of the key challenges our country faces as we work to rebound from the worst economic slump since the Great Depression,” says Mr. Cardoza. “Despite modest signs of improvement nationally, many of the hardest-hit areas are still struggling to improve. All too often the Administration’s housing stabilization programs do little to help.”