HUD News

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announces its inaugural Latino Task Force at the end of Hispanic Heritage Month 2023. This task force is a part of the larger initiative across the federal government with the sole purpose of enhancing educational and economic opportunities for Hispanics and Latinos. 

HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge said, “It is my honor to serve alongside talented, unique, and hard-working public servants of all backgrounds, including the Latino community. I am in awe of the work our Hispanic colleagues have done to create the inaugural Latino Task Force, a group that will bring us closer to accomplishing our agency’s pledge to equity, inclusion, and diversity.”

The Task Force aims to boost economic opportunities for the Hispanic community by bringing together staff from various parts of the agency. Their goals include promoting equity, enhancing language accessibility, procurement, and hiring. The initiative began following the September 2021 Executive Order on advancing educational and economic opportunities for Hispanics.

HUD Assistant Secretary for Administration Elizabeth De Leon Bhargava said, “As leaders of this Department, we have an incredible opportunity to shape how housing policies affect the Latino community across the country. If we want to see a meaningful impact on policies, there need to be people at the table with the lived experience that can influence those decisions.”

The Task Force’s Inaugural meeting led by Assistant Secretary Bhargava had 20 HUD employees. The goals of this group include workforce development and economic success, federal workforce opportunity, and federal procurement and economic opportunity. 

According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the U.S. Hispanic population stands at 62.1 Million. It means that Hispanics Account for 19% of all Americans. The research conducted on this reveals that Hispanics experience inadequate housing at double the rate of non-Hispanics. HUD found out that nearly 25% of Hispanic Households met the criteria for worst needs either paying more than half of their income towards housing or living in severely inadequate housing conditions in the “Worst Case Housing Needs” report. 

The representation of Hispanics in the federal workforce is lacking despite progress. Nearly 9% of the Civilian Labor Force (CLF) for HUD are Hispanics, equating to 706 employees who identify as Latino or Hispanic.