| Three Million Reasons Why the Bush Administration's Proposed Public Housing Budget for FY 2002 is Deeply Flawed
Issue — Public Housing Drug Elimination Program (PHDEP)
More than three million low-income families reside in the country's public housing. The Bush Administration's proposed HUD budget would have a devastating impact on those families, which include more than one million children. In addition to cutting funding for capital improvements, the administration proposes to terminate PHDEP. Congress should oppose this plan and fund the program at $410 million.
Background
PHDEP awards grants to HAs, enabling them to turn the tide against drugs and drug-related crime in their communities. Grants can be used for:
- Employment of security personnel and investigators.
- Reimbursement of local law enforcement agencies for additional security, police substations, etc.
- Voluntary resident patrols, and security devices such as cameras, fences.
- Drug education and prevention, intervention, and treatment programs.
- Security and drug prevention programs operated by resident management corporations, resident councils and other resident organizations.
The Case for PHDEP
- PHDEP is a major success. PHDEP was first implemented in 1989 under former President George Bush and HUD Secretary Jack Kemp, one of the program's most ardent supporters. For more than a decade, both Republican and Democratic administrations and Congresses have touted the success of the program. HUD currently notes on its web site, for example, that "PHDEP's success [emphasis added] is rooted in the fact that the people respond better and become more involved in something they have helped to build." HUD goes on to point out that Congress has shown its support by increasing program funding from just $8.2 million in FY 89 to more than $300 million presently.
- Evictions are not the only answer. In its budget, the Bush Administration promotes evictions as a panacea for reducing crime and drug problems in public housing. While housing authorities strongly support eviction as a tool, they are not the lone solution. Moreover, evictions take a long time and some courts will not enforce them. Indeed, a California court recently overruled a federal law that mandates evictions in public housing drug-related cases. In short, there is no more effective solution to fighting drugs and crime than PHDEP.
- PHDEP can help the new administration achieve its worthy education and "leave no child behind" goals. In HUD Secretary Mel Martinez' home state of Florida, the Panama City and Tampa housing authorities have used PHDEP grants to educate youth against drugs in after-school programs. HUD reported that Panama City's program helped result in a 69 percent reduction in HA crime in the mid-1990s. Numerous other examples of these types of PHDEP-sponsored education success stories can be found in HAs across the country.
- PHDEP helps reduce crime and rids HA properties of drugs. PHDEP has helped to dramatically reduce the crime problem in public housing. Again, current information posted on HUD's own web site written by the office that oversees PHDEP grants, states that "
in several of the nation's largest public housing authorities largest in terms of unit size the rate of crime has fallen since the mid-1990s, even though the crime rate in the respective surrounding communities increased. And we know that crime levels in many housing authorities are dropping, in both absolute and percentage terms. These are merely the success that we can measure. There are many more that are simply immeasurable."
- PHDEP works because it can be tailored to fit each HA's needs and the needs of residents. There are numerous examples of success stories from all around the country that illustrate the many positive effects of the program. Indeed, there are several right in President George W. Bush's home state of Texas.
- HUD reported that in Forth Worth, for example, the local HA reduced crime in its neighborhoods by 37 percent between 1993-97 as a result of PHDEP-funded initiatives.
- In El Paso, the local HA cut criminal trespassing (often linked with drug activity) by 50 percent. Again, HUD cited PHDEP as the major reason for the success.
- According to HUD, the number of calls to local police from Austin HA properties declined by more than 10 percent after the agency used PHDEP monies to help eradicate crime.
- PHDEP helps HAs leverage other sources of funding. In addition to providing direct funding for security measures, PHDEP grants help HAs leverage funds from other sources (i.e. local banks, Rotary & Kiwanis Clubs, private benefactors, etc.) that might otherwise be unavailable. If the program is terminated, those sources will likely diminish, if not totally disappear.
In sum, PHDEP has been a major success in helping HAs battle drugs and improve the quality of life for residents. The program has had bipartisan support since its inception and HUD has repeatedly cited the effectiveness of the program. Congress must continue to provide funding for this critically important program.
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