Our nation's 60 years of housing and urban development policies have been fashioned in a bipartisan spirit, with broad Congressional agreement over national goals and spirited differences over the means of achieving them. President Clinton and the Republican-led 104th Congress now face another critical opportunity to forge a bipartisan partnership for housing and community development policy for the 21st century. The stakes of the current debate are not purely financial. The outcomes of our decisions will affect whether or not some of the most economically vulnerable households in our society will be able to secure and remain in decent, affordable housing.

Approximately 4.7 million households currently receive HUD housing assistance. Approximately 35 percent of subsidized households are elderly and another 10 percent are disabled. About 45 percent of subsidized households are families with children. The median income for all assisted households is less than $8,000. For families in public housing it is under $6,500. HUD and its predecessor agencies have an impressive record of accomplishments: Since its foundation in 1934, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), a vital part of HUD, has insured new mortgages and refinanced home loans for 23 million families, including 1.3 million in 1994 alone. FHA insurance has also paved the way for financing 4.5 million units of rental housing and more than 312,000 beds in community hospitals, nursing homes, and other assisted living facilities. Despite its troubling image today, public housing has historically been a starting place for a better life. Public housing accounts for around 5% of all rental housing in the nation, for as much as 15% of all rental housing in a number of central cities, and a much higher percentage of their low-rent stocks. Over the years, more than 7 million families have lived in public housing supported by HUD subsidies.

Nearly 12.5 million families and individuals -- including millions of senior citizens and people with disabilities -- have found affordable housing in privately owned, federally assisted rental developments. They were able to move from back rooms to independent living because HUD was there to help.

Hundreds of communities, thousands of neighborhoods, and tens of millions of people have benefited from HUD programs over the past three decades.