House committee cuts $12.8 million from HOPWA

The U.S. House Appropriations Committee on Thursday voted to cut Department of Housing and Urban Development spending by $108 million in fiscal 2005, including a $12.8 million cut in the Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS program, AIDS Project Los Angeles reports. Lawmakers approved $282 million for HOPWA in 2005, a 4.1% funding decrease over 2004 levels. If the full Congress approves the cut, it will mark the first time in eight years that federal lawmakers have reduced HOPWA funding. Community groups had requested an additional $55 million for HOPWA in 2005. The proposed funding decrease could put thousands of low-income HIV-positive people at risk of becoming homeless or being forced to live in substandard housing, some AIDS officials say.