Weiner, Nadler Vote Alone on Housing Measure
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
WASHINGTON — In a rare move, two congressmen from New York stood against 418 fellow lawmakers to oppose a housing measure that could siphon federal funds from the city.
Democratic Reps. Anthony Weiner and Jerrold Nadler voted against an amendment that establishes a minimum level of funding for each state as part of a broader House bill creating a trust fund to finance the construction of affordable housing nationwide. They were the only two lawmakers in the House from either party to reject the measure, which was sponsored by Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts.
Mr. Weiner, who represents parts of Brooklyn and Queens, has railed against such minimums in homeland security spending, and he said through a spokesman last night that the same should apply to housing.
“State minimums by definition mean a significant portion of the program is not allocated by need,” he said. “This is just as bad for housing as it is for homeland security. In both cases, it is bad for New York.”
A spokesman for Mr. Nadler, who represents parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn, said he voted against the amendment because he felt it would mean less money for the city.
Amendments creating state minimums in federal programs are often introduced to attract broader support for a bill from lawmakers in states that might otherwise receive little money.