REGION : Housing Chief Pledges Aid for Southeast Cities

U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Henry G. Cisneros promised to be “all ears” last week as he learned more about the needs of the Southeast region, an area that is often overlooked by Washington because of its proximity to the city of Los Angeles.

He got an earful. And then gave a mouthful.

While praising housing developments and other community projects built in part with HUD money, Cisneros also delivered the news that such funding for small cities may be in jeopardy as Republicans in Congress--and President Clinton--look to shave and reorganize federal spending.

“I can’t imagine anywhere in the U.S. that is more ripe in moving people into the middle class than here,” he said to a group of city officials from Bell, Bell Gardens, Cudahy, Huntington Park and Vernon.

His comments came after a tour of the cities arranged by Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Los Angeles) to show him how the municipalities work together, and individually, in spending federal money.

Yet the former mayor of San Antonio also delivered a sobering message: Republicans in Congress are seeking to cut at least $7 billion from HUD’s current $30-billion annual budget.

HUD money that is funneled into Community Development Block Grant funds is in danger and small communities are most apt to lose from a decrease, Cisneros said.

For example, Huntington Park, which is a direct recipient of HUD money and does not have to go through county administrators like other cities to receive its federal funds, received $2.3 million in block grant funds this year. If Congress approves the current cuts, Huntington Park stands to lose $150,000 in approved money that the city may have already allocated.

“It will be disastrous if we take a cut,” Cisneros said to a room full of mayors, council members, city managers, administrators and other city officials at the Vernon Chamber of Commerce.

To counter GOP plans, Cisneros and President Clinton had proposed reorganizing HUD to consolidate many programs and save $13 billion over five years. He said the restructuring would help cities like the ones in the Southeast area.