Congress should cut corporate welfare and low-income welfare.

I testified to a House subcommittee about affordable housing.

The Low‐​Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) is a federal housing subsidy that allocates tax benefits to the states for constructing apartment buildings and other projects.

The low‐​income housing tax credit hands out $11 billion a year in tax subsidies, which are supposed to flow to tenants in lower rents.

The Democratic reconciliation bill includes dozens of new and expanded tax credits for businesses and other special interests.

In my upcoming Cato study, “Restoring Responsible Government by Cutting Federal Aid to the States,” I discuss 18 reasons why federal aid to state and local governments should be zeroed out. Reason #12 regards how aid induces states to delay important projects such as infrastructure.

Housing prices have soared in many U.S. and international cities, which has generated affordability problems for middle- and lower-income families.

Over the past two years, the White House budget called for eliminating Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) twice. If history is any indication, CDBG will once again be proposed for elimination when the budget is published next week. Most likely, Congress will reject the White House’s suggestion, as it has in previous years.

If Congress cares about helping low-income people, it isn’t clear why they would reject the White House’s suggestion, or at least why Congress wouldn’t repurpose CDBG money for activities that address low-income needs directly.

President Trump’s annual budget is slated for release March 11th. Although there are many decisions to make, the most challenging choices will likely be regarding what to cut.