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Aurora legislative committee hears late DHS leadership change and a bipartisan housing effort
Summary
At a committee briefing, the city’s federal lobbyist said a just-announced change at the Department of Homeland Security may open new paths for House‑Senate negotiations, and staff described a bipartisan housing package that would expand HOME and CDBG uses and curb Wall Street purchases of single‑family homes.
Federal lobbyist Lizzie told the Aurora City legislative committee that the Department of Homeland Security remained unfunded while House and Senate leaders work to close negotiations and that an abrupt White House personnel change could affect those talks. “The department is still shut down at the federal level,” Lizzie said, and she reported that the President had announced Secretary Kristi Noem would move to a new special‑envoy role while Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullen will serve as acting DHS head starting March 31.
The announcement, Lizzie said, could alter the dynamics of appropriations negotiations. “We are still hearing that they are far apart, Democrats and Republicans, on negotiations for that bill,” she said.
Why it matters: DHS funding affects many local programs and employees (including TSA and other contractor roles), and prolonged shutdowns can disrupt services used by residents. Several council members said they were concerned about the economic impact on federal workers and stressed the importance of reopening DHS quickly.
Lizzie also briefed the committee on a new bipartisan Senate measure combining earlier House and Senate housing proposals into what she called the “21st‑century Road to Housing Act.” She said the package would expand eligibility for the HOME Investment Partnerships program, permit certain CDBG funds to be used for new construction, waive environmental reviews for qualifying infill projects, reauthorize CDBG disaster recovery, and include a provision to cap Wall Street purchases of single‑family homes.
“The bill combines key components of both of these pieces of legislation… and as part of that, they have named it the 21st‑century Road to Housing Act,” Lizzie said. She added that the scheme to curb institutional investors from buying single‑family homes has drawn bipartisan Senate support but could face pushback in the House.
Council members welcomed the housing provisions as relevant to local affordability challenges. Vice Chair Jackson said the Wall Street cap was “very relevant to the issues we deal in Aurora.” Council Member Wiles said she planned to request more detail and bring a formal city position in a future meeting.
What’s next: Lizzie said staff and lobbyists will continue monitoring floor action and timing. She warned that while leaders had signaled quick movement, actual consideration in either chamber depends on leadership calendars and other legislative priorities.
The committee did not take a formal vote on federal issues at the meeting; members asked staff to keep them updated as negotiations proceed.
