The federal government’s main housing agency has just one management-level employee in its New York City field office as President Trump has targeted the department for large-scale cuts as part of his push for massive spending reductions, the Daily News has learned.
The revelation was contained in a letter Reps. Dan Goldman (D-Brooklyn, Manhattan), Paul Tonko (D-Albany) and Timothy Kennedy (D-Buffalo) sent Monday to Scott Turner, Trump’s new housing and urban development secretary.
In the letter, the three Democrats wrote they recently learned that there is “just one field policy and management employee left at the New York City office,” which helps with processing of rental assistance benefits like Section 8 for nearly a million residents, many of them in public housing.
“We have been informed that our constituents seeking help in person at local field offices will likely be turned away because reduced staff cannot adequately serve all those who need it,” they added.
It’s unclear exactly how many staffers there used to be in the city office. A Goldman rep said there were several prior to this year, though.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Housing and Urban Development declined to comment in response to an inquiry from The News.
The missive comes after The Associated Press reported last month that Trump’s administration has internally laid out a proposal at HUD to slash its workforce in half. Some of those cuts appear to have since moved forward.
The three New York lawmakers urged Turner to pump the brakes on any further attempts to gut the agency, warning that disastrous consequences could otherwise ensue.
“Any attempt to unilaterally eliminate or significantly reduce the workforce of a HUD field office will make it far more difficult for the most vulnerable Americans to access vital public resources, make the process far less efficient, and ultimately prevent many from getting the benefits they are entitled to,” they wrote.
Given staffing levels, the agency’s city office may effectively shut down if more cuts are imposed, the lawmakers warned.
Trump’s administration hasn’t just targeted HUD for cuts. In an effort spearheaded by billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk, the administration is slashing spending for various initiatives across the federal bureaucracy, including foreign aid and education funding.