NEWS RELEASE
January 13, 2022
Media Contact:
Liz Merah, 503-877-8287
Charles Boyle, 503-931-7773
Governor Kate Brown Statement on President Biden’s Appointment of Margaret Salazar as U.S. Housing and Urban Development Regional Administrator
(Salem, OR) — Governor Kate Brown today issued the following statement, after the White House's announcement that President Biden has appointed Oregon Housing and Community Services Director Margaret Salazar to be Regional Administrator of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development:
“I’d like to thank Director Salazar for her committed service to the people of Oregon and wish her my very best in her new role. Throughout the pandemic, Director Salazar has been one of the most effective leaders in our state government. She has led her dedicated team at Oregon Housing and Community Services with grace and determination through incredible challenges on a scale no one has faced before.
“With her extensive leadership and expertise in housing issues at the local, statewide, and national levels, I know she is the right person for this job, where she can use her talents to address the unprecedented housing challenges our nation faces, while also representing Oregon’s voice and unique needs at the federal level. Housing stability is fundamental, and we must work together at the local, state, and federal level to continue increasing housing supply, strengthen tenant protections, help more people return from homelessness to housing, and address our country’s legacy of racist housing policy that has created deep racial disparities in housing stability and homeownership.”
Salazar has been the Executive Director of Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) since November 2016, where she has overseen the state’s efforts to build affordable housing, open the door to homeownership, prevent and end homelessness, and expand housing stability. Under Salazar’s leadership, OHCS developed the state’s first Statewide Housing Plan, with ambitious goals to expand the number of affordable homes produced with state funding. At just over two years into the five-year plan, OHCS and its partners have funded or created more than 18,000 affordable homes––nearly three-quarters of their five-year goal.
Prior to joining OHCS, Salazar served in various leadership roles over a 10-year career at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Salazar also served on the HUD Agency Review Team for the Biden-Harris Presidential Transition team in 2020-21.
Salazar, who grew up in Hood River and Portland, earned her master’s degree from the Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley, and her bachelor's degree from Wesleyan University.
Salazar’s full biography can be found here.
A photo of Salazar is available here.
The official announcement from the White House is available here.
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