The metaphor of a marathon reflects resilience, mental grit and a commitment to the long-haul qualities that housing advocates are familiar with. For generations, we've pushed through setbacks and celebrated fleeting victories. 

But with President Donald Trump's proposed "skinny budget" for fiscal year 2026, we once again find ourselves bracing for impact. This time, the threat isn't symbolic; it's existential.

Released May 2, the administration's budget outlines sweeping cuts to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), a proposal to block grant rental assistance and the quiet dismantling of key HUD and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) oversight mechanisms, all under the guise of efficiency and fiscal responsibility. 

But this isn't budgetary prudence. It's policy sabotage. The consequences of these proposed cuts are not abstract; they represent evictions, homelessness, displacement of seniors and veterans, and unraveling the hard-won progress communities have made across Nevada and the country.

This budget is a wish list, a declaration of priorities from an administration claiming to champion the American dream while undermining the foundation needed to achieve it. While Congress ultimately controls the purse strings, those in the trenches who know this race feels rigged understand how damaging this vision could be.

The message this sends to Nevada builders, lenders and local governments is chilling: The federal government can no longer be relied upon as a stable partner in solving the housing crisis. That kind of uncertainty weakens the already fragile framework supporting affordable housing, doing so under the guise of reform.

Take the Emergency Housing Voucher (EHV) program created under the American Rescue Plan. Designed to help those at immediate risk of homelessness, EHVs have enabled nearly 60,000 households, many with children, to secure housing. 

However, rising rents have rapidly depleted available funds, which were initially projected to last through 2030. Now, they could run out by 2026 without congressional action.

Worse yet, the proposal to consolidate all rental assistance, including Housing Choice Vouchers, HUD-assisted housing and USDA programs, into state block grants would strip away federal guarantees and open the floodgates to inequality. It would hollow out the very concept of publicly subsidized housing.

Over the last few months, we have witnessed the gouging of HUD and USDA. Essential staff is being let go and, ultimately, the loss of institutional memory will take years to repair. 

In all, the infrastructure needed to deliver rural and federal housing programs is being stripped away in real time. Every aspect of affordable housing development that relies on HUD and U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development oversight and approval (environmental review, disbursement of funds, fair housing review, disposition review, design review, field office approvals, legal reviews and approvals through Office of the General Counsel) has become more complicated because of the absence of staff. 

Our communities throughout Nevada were born into decades of disinvestment, exclusionary policy and systemic neglect, and just as momentum was building, this budget threatens to strip it all away. In Las Vegas, historic redlining confined Black residents to Westside neighborhoods to cut off access to credit, public investment and homeownership.   

In rural Nevada, the fallout would be just as catastrophic. More than 500 households served by Nevada Rural Housing, two-thirds of which are headed by elderly or disabled individuals, stand to lose their assistance. 

These aren't the "able-bodied" individuals some political rhetoric scapegoats. They are our veterans, grandparents and neighbors. These residents depend on wraparound supports such as Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Social Security.

According to the latest report from the Kaiser Family Foundation, approximately 738,000 Nevadans are enrolled in Medicaid. In our state, Medicaid plays a pivotal role, covering 42 percent of all births, 39 percent of children, 35 percent of working-age adults with disabilities, and 60 percent of nursing home residents. Additionally, SNAP provides support to more than 500,000 or 15 percent of the state’s 3 million residents, this equates to every 1 of 6 individuals. This underscores the program’s importance in fighting food insecurity.  

There have been proposals introduced to impose Medicaid work requirements, shifting the program to block grants that will drive up the emergency room usage and eventually see an uptick in out-of-pocket costs.

This will paralyze the collaborative momentum we've fought to build. Households that are stably housed now will lose critical assistance, and we will see a terrible ripple effect of increased homelessness and significant challenges that will arise in our schools and hospitals. 

The proposed consolidation of Tenant-Based Rental Assistance and Project-Based Rental Assistance into block grants with added two-year time limits would disrupt tenants' housing and destabilize financing for affordable housing developments. Similarly, folding Continuum of Care funding into the Emergency Solutions Grant program under similar time limits would devastate long-term supportive housing efforts statewide. And while this administration moves to slash lifelines for the poorest among us, it champions extending tax cuts for the wealthiest. In what world is that a formula for prosperity?

What was once a policy debate has now become a matter of people's lives. This begs the question: Is housing a fundamental human right, or does the government value privilege over equity? Do we uplift veterans, survivors, children and working families or abandon them in an unstable market?

In Nevada, housing advocates are no strangers to uphill battles. But this isn't pro wrestling; there's no choreography here. This is a real fight, and we need reinforcements. I urge all Nevadans to tell our members of Congress to reject this budget. Stand up for the programs that keep families housed and communities whole.

We're in the race, but we can't win without a government that runs with us. 

Maurice Page is the executive director of the Nevada Housing Coalition, a statewide, member-based nonprofit working to promote the development and preservation of affordable housing for all Nevadans. He has a bachelor’s degree in business management – entrepreneurship and a master’s degree in adult education and leadership.

The Nevada Independent welcomes informed, cogent rebuttals to opinion pieces such as this. They can be submitted here.