In her prepared testimony ahead of her confirmation hearing, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) nominee Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-OH) wrote that if she is confirmed, she will fight to end discriminatory housing policies and help keep residents in their homes during the pandemic. 

"The housing issues our nation faces are real, varied, and touch all of us. I am a strong believer in the Department’s programs and its mission — especially with regard to serving those who face the greatest need," Fudge wrote in her testimony.

Fudge, 68, will have her confirmation hearing Friday in front of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. She will appear remotely from her home in Warrensville, Ohio. Fudge is a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and was recently elected to a seventh term representing a majority Black district that includes parts of Cleveland and Akron. 

In her testimony, she said housing issues don't fit a "cookie-cutter mold," and that each state's policies and programs must be adapted differently. Fudge says that 21 million Americans pay more than 30% of their income on housing, and that 1 in 5 renters and 1 in 10 homeowners are behind on payments due to job loss during the pandemic. 

"Although Congress provided $25 billion in rental assistance and the CDC extended the eviction moratorium, this is not enough at a time when tens of millions of Americans are behind on rent; almost 3 million homeowners are currently in forbearance; and another 800,000 borrowers are delinquent. Much like COVID19, the housing crisis isn’t isolated by geography. It is the daily reality for tens of millions of our fellow Americans — people in blue states and red states, in cities and small towns," Fudge wrote. 

Another task Fudge plans to tackle is to make homeownership a reality for all Americans. Last year, 95% of white Americans owned a home, compared to 50% of Hispanic Americans, 46% Black Americans and 61% Asian Americans, according to the Pew Research Center. 

Fudge wrote the gap cannot be broken down until discriminatory housing policies are put to an end, "and ensure that our fair housing rules are doing what they are supposed to do: opening the door for families, especially families of color who have been systematically kept out in the cold across generations, to buy homes and punch their ticket to the middle class."

Fudge's goals go along with Biden's mission to reinstate an Obama-era rule that ensured communities to identify racial barriers in the housing market, and if they didn't, they would lose federal funds.