With Brian Montgomery currently awaiting a full Senate vote to confirm him as the next deputy secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Trump administration is moving to name his replacement as the leader of the Federal Housing Administration.
The Trump administration announced Thursday it plans to nominate Dana Wade to serve as HUD’s assistant secretary for housing and federal housing commissioner, a role that would put Wade in charge of the FHA.
Montgomery holds that role now, while also serving as interim deputy secretary of HUD for more than a year.
In October, President Donald Trump nominated Montgomery to be the second in line behind HUD Secretary Ben Carson, but Montgomery has held HUD’s No. 2 spot on an acting basis since January 2019.
If Montgomery is officially approved for the deputy secretary position, the position of FHA commissioner would be empty, opening the door for Wade to step in.
Wade would replace Montgomery, who is in his second term as FHA commissioner. He previously held the job under former President George W. Bush, staying on for six months after former President Barack Obama’s inauguration.
Like Montgomery, Wade would be in her second stint as FHA commissioner if she is approved. Wade previously was the acting federal housing commissioner and assistant secretary for housing from July 2017 to June 2018.
That period covered the time in between when Montgomery was nominated to serve as FHA commissioner and when he was approved.
According to an announcement from the White House, during her time as acting FHA commissioner, Wade “oversaw over 2,400 employees and implemented enhanced risk management and monitoring of the Federal Housing Agency’s $1.3 trillion portfolio.”
It should be noted that the release from the White House states that Wade previously served as the acting commissioner of the “Federal Housing Agency,” which doesn’t exist.
The White House likely meant “Federal Housing Administration,” not “Federal Housing Agency.”
The White House announcement also states that Wade served as a program associate director for general government at the Office of Management and Budget from December 2018 to December 2019. In that role, Wade led budget oversight for six Executive Branch agencies, including HUD, and multiple independent agencies.
Wade has also served as the deputy staff director for the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Development.
