(The Center Square) — The New Orleans Office of Housing Policy and Community Development is asking the City Council to shrink its operating budget next year after federal pandemic aid wound down and temporary pay programs ended.
In a presentation Wednesday, the office proposed a $118.5 million operating plan for 2026, down from $147.4 million adopted for 2025 — a cut of $28.8 million driven almost entirely by the expiration of federal Emergency Rental Assistance money. General-fund dollars, which the office receives to represent residents in eviction cases, would also drop from $2.39 million this year to $1.30 million in 2026.
The Emergency Rental Assistance grant that funded the office was authorized under the COVID-era American Rescue Plan…