Rep. Gomez Seeks to Redirect $175B From ICE, CBP to Housing

Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif., introduced legislation Wednesday to redirect $175 billion set aside for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection under President Donald Trump's "big beautiful bill" to affordable-housing programs.

Gomez called the funding an "anti-immigrant slush fund" and said the Make Housing Affordable and Defend Democracy Act would redirect the money toward lowering rents, expanding homeownership, and boosting construction of affordable housing nationwide.

"I'm introducing this bill because families across the country are being crushed by housing costs while Trump uses $175 billion to terrorize families with his own national police force," Gomez said in a statement.

The bill would create a monthly renter tax credit for households spending over 30% of their income on rent, give at least $25,000 to first-time homebuyers and $50,000 to first-generation buyers for down payments, and offer a 20%–35% tax credit to convert vacant offices into affordable housing.

Gomez said the bill builds on momentum from a National Summit on the Housing Affordability Crisis that he convened as part of an effort to push a coordinated response to rising housing costs.

"At the summit, I said this crisis demands a New Deal-level housing movement, and I meant it,” Gomez said in a statement.

The legislation also calls for a starter-home construction credit for first-time buyers and would expand the supply of affordable housing by strengthening the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit.

Gomez said the measure differs from other housing proposals because it is designed to be paid for by shifting funding away from immigration-enforcement programs, including money for border militarization, detention facilities, and DHS and ICE initiatives, and reallocating it into housing assistance and development incentives.

"My son just turned three. He doesn't understand the affordability crisis he's inheriting yet, but he will live with the consequences if we fail to act," Gomez said in the statement.

"This bill restores the simple promise that if you work hard, you can afford a home and build a future for your family."

• 'Housing First' Won't Fix Homelessness
• Treasury Adviser: Lower Rates Would Boost Housing