Trump Nominates Scott Turner For HUD Secretary
A nine-year NFL veteran, Turner served in Trump's first administration and currently chairs the Center for Education Opportunity of the America First Policy Institute.
On Friday evening, President-Elect Trump named Scott Turner as his nominee for secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), among a slew of other nominations, per a statement published on Truth Social by Trump's transition team.
From Richardson, Texas, Turner served as the first Executive Director of the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council in Trump’s first administration, previously serving in the Texas legislature representing the 33rd District, which includes part of Collin County and all of Rockwall County, from 2013 to 2017.
He currently is Chair of the Center for Education Opportunity at the America First Policy Institute (AFPI), a Trump-allied think tank founded in 2021 by Brooke Rollins and Larry Kudlow, former advisers to Trump in his first administration.
In coordination with former HUD Secretary Ben Carson, Turner's role as Executive Director of the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council involved overseeing and disbursing investment for Opportunity Zones, areas across the U.S. designated to receive tax incentives to spur economic growth.
In a statement, Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) President and CEO Bob Broeksmit, CMB, congratulated Turner on the nomination.
“Pursuing policies and initiatives that help solve our nation’s housing affordability crisis for owners and renters should be a top policy priority under the Trump administration," said Broeksmit. "Scott’s leadership as Executive Director of the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council in the first Trump administration, where, alongside Secretary Ben Carson, he was instrumental in implementing Opportunity Zones, will serve him well."
The Community Home Lenders of America (CHLA) also congratulated Turner in a statement, but did not waste anytime floating a few housing priorities for the nominee to begin considering.
"Heading into 2025," the statement read, "CHLA will continue to spearhead important initiatives at FHA that protect borrowers and the community lenders that serve them, such as: premiums commensurate with risk, a partial claims payment option, streamlining condo approvals, and pay-scale comparability.”
Turner played professional football for the Washington Commanders (formerly Washington Redskins), San Diego Chargers, and Denver Broncos. His career spanned nine years from 1995-2004.
He graduated from the University of Illinois where he earned an undergraduate degree in speech communications and also played football, according to Turner’s bio on AFPI's website.