Senator Murray Announces Millions in Federal Housing Funding for Washington State Tribes During COVID-19 Pandemic

The more than $42 million in federal awards come as part of the Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) Program, which Senator Murray successfully worked to strengthen funding for in past spending bills and has fought to protect 

A senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Murray helped secure more than $10 billion for Tribes in the CARES Act last year

Senator Murray: “I’ll continue working to ensure Native communities get the resources they need to remain safely housed and combat the health and economic harm of this pandemic”

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced millions in federal housing funding to support Washington state Tribes during the COVID-19 pandemic. The awards, which total $42,395,320 for Tribes across Washington state, will be distributed through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) program. The IHBG program provides funding to Tribes and Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHEs) to carry out affordable housing activities, such as developing, maintaining, and operating housing, with a focus on providing housing and other resources for Tribal families with low incomes.

“As the COVID-19 pandemic has only worsened inequities in housing that Tribal members across Washington state were already facing, we need to keep investing in programs like the Indian Housing Block Grant that provide Tribes with the flexible resources they need to combat the housing crisis we are seeing throughout Indian Country,” Senator Murray said. “As a proud partner for Tribes in Washington state and across the country, I’ll continue working to ensure Native communities get the resources they need to remain safely housed and combat the health and economic harm of this pandemic.”

According to a 2017 report by HUD, before the pandemic more than 50% of Tribal households in the Pacific Northwest qualified as low-income (less than 80% of median income). The report also detailed the extent to which households in Tribal areas deal with physical housing deficiencies, such as heating or plumbing deficiencies, at a much higher rate than other U.S. households. These housing issues are only exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, as key Tribal businesses are forced to close and thousands remain unemployed.

Last year, Senator Murray fought to include more than $10 billion in funding for Tribes in the CARES Act, and announced the allocation of more than $12 million in awards for Washington state Tribes in the first round of federal funding in 2020 to support Tribal housing efforts. She has made clear that she will continue fighting for more funding to address the specific needs of Tribal communities in Washington state, and to ensure that federal funds for Tribes are promptly and properly distributed.

In her role as a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Murray has successfully fought for increased funding for the IHBG Program, which helps to combat housing issues specifically plaguing Tribal communities—in particular, Tribal families who are low-income. Last year she succeeded in her fight despite a staunch push from the Trump Administration to cut funding for this crucial program in his 2021 budget plan.

See a full breakdown of the $42,395,320 in federal awards going to Washington state Tribes below.

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