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December 18, 2002
Several housing groups send letter opposing Section 8 voucher cuts
A number of influential Washington-based housing organizations sent a letter to the Senate Committee on Appropriations on December 16 protesting the proposed funding decrease for the Section 8 voucher program contained in the House Appropriations Committee's markup (H.R. 5605). Among others, signees include the National Association of Homebuilders and the National Association of Realtors. The text of the letter follows.
The Honorable Barbara Mikulski The Honorable Christopher Bond
Committee on Appropriations Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senators:
The undersigned groups are strongly opposed to the House Appropriations Committee's recommendations to decrease funding for the Section 8 voucher program and to redesign the formula for voucher allocation.
The House appropriators' funding formula for the Voucher program was included in its FY03 spending bill (H.R. 5605). We believe the proposal, if implemented, will create a shortfall of nearly 125,000 vouchers as it relies on data that does not reflect the number of vouchers being leased today. Such a shortfall will result in many current voucher families losing their assistance.
In recent years, a number of improvements have been made to the voucher rules resulting in an increased number of conventional apartment communities participating in the voucher program.
Apartment owners and managers rely on the voucher administrator's ability to make the required rental payments under the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) contract. The House proposal will no doubt create uncertainty in this regard, the results of which will have a chilling impact upon market participation in the program. Efforts need to be made to improve the program further to expand participation to improve the quality and options made available to voucher families. The House proposal moves in the opposite direction, impacting low-income families, and will create greater reluctance in the market to participate in the program.
Concerns about adequate funding will also jeopardize a housing authority's ability to launch a program for homeownership vouchers and/or project-based vouchers. Both of these initiatives hold promise for increasing opportunities for low-income families and expanding the supply of affordable housing.
We request that when the Senate and House deliberate on the FY03 HUD spending bill that the House proposal be rejected in favor of the current voucher funding allocation formula.
Sincerely,
Council for Affordable Rural Housing
Institute for Responsible Housing Preservation
Institute of Real Estate Management
National Apartment Association
National Association of Homebuilders
National Assisted Housing Management Association
National Association of Realtors
National Leased Housing Association
National Multi Housing Council
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