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Action Alert Archive
ACTION
ALERT Date:
May 4, 2004
Subject: Low Income Housing Action Alert —Please
take a moment to contact your U.S. Senators & Representative!
SECTION 8 VOUCHER ACTION ALERT NOW IS THE TIME! Tell Congress:
HUD must withdraw its new voucher policy that will force families
out of their homes. On April 22, HUD (Housing and Urban Development)
announced it would no longer reimburse local housing authorities
based on actual current voucher costs. Instead, HUD is now
issuing payments based on the cost of vouchers under lease
on August 1, 2003, adjusted for inflation. Housing authorities
across the country are planning for the possibility of having
to terminate residents from the program or otherwise cover
funding shortfalls. The problem is exacerbated because HUD
has refused to pay many housing authorities funds owed from
last year (overdue reserves), leaving many without sufficient
funds to cover the emerging shortfalls.
This is the first time in the 30-year history of Section
8 voucher program that existing vouchers will be cut. This
unexpected change in the middle of a fiscal year catches many
local housing authorities off-guard, without sufficient time
and resources to plan for implementation of the new policy.
Congress should be outraged about this change. In the notice,
HUD blamed Congress for the change. However, Congress added
funding to the voucher program in 2004 specifically so HUD
could fully fund all vouchers currently in use. ŇIt is clear
that the intent of Congress was to ensure that the voucher
program was sufficiently funded so that no family would lose
assistance,Ó Senators Paul Sarbanes (D-MD) and Susan Collins
(R-ME) wrote to HUD.
This action comes on top of the AdministrationŐs FY 2005
budget plan to eliminate 250,000 existing vouchers. Background
In FY 2004, Congressional appropriations for HUD included
full funding for all existing Section 8 vouchers in the United
States. Congress made an additional appropriation of $1 billion
in FY 2004 to protect all families with Section 8 vouchers.
Clearly, Congress intended that all existing vouchers would
be covered in FY 2004. A new HUD ruling, released last week,
contradicts the Congressional intent and retroactively eliminates
funding to support many families across the United States.
More information is available at www.nlihc.org
or www.cbpp.org.
WILL MY COMMUNITY BE AFFECTED? Many communities have already
realized they will be impacted by HUDŐs actions, and others
are beginning to realize the scope of the changes. Housing
authorities at highest risk for immediate shortfalls include:
- Those with fiscal years ending June 30 (because they will
need to make up all funding shortfalls in the next 60 days).
- Those in places where voucher holdersŐ incomes have gone
down, or where rent on low-cost apartments has increased
over the past several months (These are the communities
where HUDŐs inflation factor used to adjust the 2003 rates
will be inadequate).
- Those that do not have reserve funds on hand. In INDIANA
some of the Housing Authorities without reserves are: INDIANA
VOUCHERS IN JEAPORDY Housing Authority Vouchers at risk
City of South Bend 2,124 Fayette Co 376 Goshen 320 Knox
Co. 334 Michigan City 251 Richmond 273 Terre Haute 826 Warsaw
175 TOTAL 4,679 Many other communities may be forced to
reduce their available vouchers over the next several months.
Even if your housing authority does not fall into these categories,
funding cuts to the Section 8 program will affect your community,
as landlords, developers, and banks lose confidence in the
program. This is yet another step in the Bush AdministrationŐs
plan to chip away at the program, as HUD tries to enact changes
that Congress would not approve.
After you call your Member of Congress, pass this notice
to your local housing authority and make sure they are aware
of the problem. Sources for this brief: Center on Budget and
Policy Priorities National Low Income Housing Coalition TAKE
ACTION Call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard (202) -224-3121 and
ask to be connected to your member of the House of Representatives.
Contact information for Representatives and Senators is listed
below. Message: Representative/Senator new cuts to housing
vouchers are unacceptable. I urge you to direct HUD to:
- Withdraw the April 22 notice changing the way housing
vouchers are funded, because the change is leading to funding
cuts across the country.
- Fully fund all housing vouchers in 2004, as Congress intended.
- Fund vouchers based on their actual cost according to
the latest available data.
Please report the results of your calls to Katie Fisher at
Katie@nlihc.org or 202-662-1530 x222. THANK YOU FOR TAKING
ACTION!
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