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David Greer
Director of Communications
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A coalition of more than 70 national organizations tell the Administration & Congress that people with the lowest incomes will be hit hardest if the shutdown continues.
Washington, DC - Members of the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding (CHCDF) sent a letter to congressional leaders today calling on them to protect low-income Americans by ending the government shutdown and passing full-year spending bills that provide strong funding for affordable housing and community development programs.
CHCDF, a coalition led by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, expressed strong concern for the shutdown’s immediate and long-term impacts on affordable housing programs and the low-income people they serve. The letter also called out the shutdown’s impact on the housing stability of low-wage government contractors, like janitors, security guards, and cafeteria servers, who often live paycheck-to-paycheck. These individuals working without pay are at risk of being unable to cover their rent payments, putting them at risk of eviction.
The government shutdown is thwarting critical investments in local communities and in affordable and accessible housing for low-income families, threatening to destabilize over four million households that depend on HUD’s rental assistance programs and creating widespread uncertainty for affordable housing investors.
“The longer the shutdown continues, the more the lowest income people will be hard hit,” said NLIHC President and CEO Diane Yentel. “Residents living in HUD-subsidized properties are some of our country’s most vulnerable people - the clear majority are deeply poor seniors, people with disabilities, and families with children. They rely on government assistance to remain housed, and a prolonged government shutdown puts them at increased risk of eviction and potentially homelessness. It’s incredibly reckless to risk the homes of our country’s lowest-income and most vulnerable people as perceived leverage for a border wall.”
“The partial government shutdown is a disaster for the millions of low-income families, seniors, and people with disabilities who depend on HUD assistance for safe, stable housing,” said Council of Large Public Housing Authorities Executive Director Sunia Zaterman. “Funding uncertainty puts more than two million voucher households at risk of losing their homes, and a lack of operating fund payments will force public housing authorities to shut units that cannot be repaired or properly maintained.”
“The bottom line for us is care and concern for the people we serve, and the shutdown hurts them,” said CSH President and CEO Deborah De Santis. “Every hour the deadlock drags on means people who really need housing and services are not going to get them. And the longer critical agencies stay shuttered the more likely it is families, children and other individuals now counting on help to stay housed and healthy will have their lifelines cut off.”
“Each day of the shutdown makes it harder and harder for the nearly 10 million people who live in HUD-assisted housing – low-income families, people with disabilities, veterans, and the elderly – to avoid eviction, keep their heat turned on, and access health care and supportive services,” said Enterprise Community Partners President Laurel Blatchford. “Congress and the Administration must find a way to restore funding for programs critical to the livelihoods of Americans across the country.”
“As the shutdown continues, HUD has made clear it will become unable to renew rental assistance contracts for housing providers,” said LeadingAge President and CEO Katie Smith Sloan. “LeadingAge’s members, all nonprofits, rely on regular and adequate funding to provide quality affordable housing to some of the nation’s lowest-income older adults. The average older adult in HUD’s Section 202 Housing for the Elderly program has an annual income of $13,300, an income far too little to make ends meet in any private housing market. More than 400,000 older adults rely on the Section 202 program, while another 1.2 million rely on other HUD programs for housing assistance. We urge Congress and the White House to end the shutdown so that each of these 1.6 million older adults have the stable housing they need to age with dignity.”
“Local governments rely on consistent contact with HUD in order to ensure reliable funding for services, projects and developments funded with grant programs like the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnerships program,” said National Association for County Community and Economic Development Executive Director Laura DeMaria. “These programs provide vital services and resources to low-income families across the country. As long as HUD remains shut down, local governments, their community partners, and the low-income families they serve will lack the stability and constant flow of funds they need to operate.”
“This shutdown is hurting families across the country whether or not they work for the federal government and prolonging it will make matters worse,” said NAHRO CEO Adrianne Todman. “Capital expenses that require approval from HUD employees are left undone, and housing vouchers are not reaching families in need as housing agencies curtail additional spending. We should be especially concerned about the public- and private-sector landlords in the project-based rental assistance program who are left without funding and/or contract renewals. Those who can are already dipping into their reserves to make repairs and respond to their residents’ needs, but these reserves only go so far. This is unacceptable. End the shutdown.”
“Vulnerable Americans are the casualty of the current political battle. As a partial federal shutdown drags on, essential federal housing programs and tenant protections are in jeopardy,” said National Housing Law Project Executive Director Shamus Roller.
“The needless government shutdown has put the lowest-income residents at risk and left private rental housing owners scrambling to cover operating costs for which the federal government is contractually responsible,” said National Housing Trust Federal Policy Director Ellen Lurie Hoffman. “This threatens seniors, people with disabilities, and families who are struggling to make ends meet, as well as the viability of critically important affordable housing properties.”
Read the complete letter outlining the impact of the shutdown on specific affordable housing programs at: https://bit.ly/2RkB8Xd.
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About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities: The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities is a national non-profit organization that works to preserve and improve public and affordable housing through advocacy, research, policy analysis and public education.
About National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC): Established in 1974 by Cushing N. Dolbeare, the National Low Income Housing Coalition is dedicated solely to achieving socially just public policy that assures people with the lowest incomes in the United States have affordable and decent homes.
About Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding (CHCDF): An education, strategy and action hub led by NLIHC. The coalition of more than 70 national organizations works to ensure the highest allocation of resources possible to support affordable housing and community development. CHCDF’s members represent a full continuum of national housing and community development organizations, including faith-based, private sector, financial/intermediary, public sector and advocacy groups.
Announcing the New CLPHA.org
(WASHINGTON) January 7, 2019 - The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities (CLPHA) is pleased to announce the launch of our newly-redesigned website.
The new CLPHA.org showcases our member PHAs and offers industry news and updates with a bright, modern look and dynamic, user-friendly content that is easy to navigate on a desktop computer or a mobile device.
DYNAMIC: A carousel of stories and the latest news on the front page keeps the content fresh. CLPHA.org is a website to bookmark and visit regularly.
INFORMATIONAL: At the new CLPHA.org, you will find articles and information about the latest developments on Capitol Hill and from HUD, facts and updates about programs important to public and affordable housing, and news from CLPHA about our work on behalf of our members.
USER-FRIENDLY: The new CLPHA.org features sections on each of CLPHA's priorities: Public Housing, Housing Choice Vouchers, Moving to Work, RAD, and our cross-sector initiative Housing Is. Plus, dedicated sections for Legislation & Policy, Press, News & Events, and Membership.
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About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities
The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities is a national non-profit organization that works to preserve and improve public and affordable housing through advocacy, research, policy analysis and public education.
Experts to Present First National Snapshot of Health Partnerships in Public Housing
Free Webinar Aug. 29, 12 PM ET
WASHINGTON (August 28, 2018) - Half of the nation’s public housing authorities (PHAs) are engaged in a resident health initiative, most with a health organization partner according to Health Starts at Home: A National Snapshot of Public Housing Authorities' Health Partnerships, the latest report released by the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities (CLPHA) and the Public and Affordable Housing Research Corporation (PAHRC). The report provides the first national snapshot of PHA efforts to address residents’ health care needs and emphasizes opportunities for collaboration between the health and housing sectors.
Report authors Steve Lucas, MPH, CLPHA Health Research and Policy Manger for the Housing Is Initiative, Keely Stater, PHD, PAHRC Director of Research and Industry Intelligence, and Kelly McElwain, PAHRC Research Analyst III, will present their analysis during a free webinar on August 29, 2018 at 12:00 PM ET.
“Housing and health systems need to work together,” said Lucas, who designed and implemented the original survey that led to the report. “Public housing authorities are significant providers of housing to those in need, offering the health sector scale and expertise. We found that PHAs across the country are engaged in a wide range of partnerships with different health organizations that address various target populations and health priorities. Though there are barriers to housing-health collaboration, such as funding and staffing capacity, these can be overcome with cross-system partnerships that seek to address these needs.”
Lucas published the initial survey findings in an issue of CityScape, a research publication of the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development. The article, “Connecting Fragmented Systems: Public Housing Authority Partnerships with the Health Sector,” is posted to the HUD User website.
What: Free Webinar: Building PHA Health Initiatives and Cross-Sector Partnerships
When: Wednesday, August 29, 2018, 12:00 PM ET
WEBINAR RECORDING: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5-jm5eF_YU&t=24s
Webinar Presenters
Steve Lucas, MPH
Health Research and Policy Manager, Housing Is Initiative,
Council of Large Public Housing Authorities
Keely Stater, PhD
Director of Research and Industry Intelligence,
Public and Affordable Housing Research Corporation,
HAI Group's Research Division
Kelly McElwain
Research Analyst III,
Public and Affordable Housing Research Corporation,
HAI Group's Research Division
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About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities
The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities is a national non-profit organization that works to preserve and improve public and affordable housing through advocacy, research, policy analysis and public education. CLPHA’s 70 members represent virtually every major metropolitan area in the country. Together they manage 40 percent of the nation’s public housing program; administer 26 percent of the Housing Choice Voucher program; and operate a wide array of other housing programs. Learn more at clpha.org and on Twitter @CLPHA.
About Housing Is
CLPHA’s Housing Is Initiative helps establish, broaden, and deepen efforts to align affordable housing, education, and health systems to produce positive, long-term results. We are building a future where systems work together to improve life outcomes for low-income people. Learn more at HousingIs.org and on Twitter @Housing_Is.
- Listen to HousingWire's coverage of our letter in their Daily Download podcast.
- Read HousingWire's article about our letter.
August 3, 2020
About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities
The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities is a national non-profit organization that works to preserve and improve public and affordable housing through advocacy, research, policy analysis and public education. CLPHA’s 70 members represent virtually every major metropolitan area in the country. Together they manage 40 percent of the nation’s public housing program; administer more than a quarter of the Housing Choice Voucher program; and operate a wide array of other housing programs. Learn more at clpha.org and on Twitter @CLPHA and follow @housing_is for news on CLPHA’s work to better intersect the housing field and other areas of critical importance such as health and education.
July 30, 2020
About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities
The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities is a national non-profit organization that works to preserve and improve public and affordable housing through advocacy, research, policy analysis and public education. CLPHA’s 70 members represent virtually every major metropolitan area in the country. Together they manage 40 percent of the nation’s public housing program; administer more than a quarter of the Housing Choice Voucher program; and operate a wide array of other housing programs. Learn more at clpha.org and on Twitter @CLPHA and follow @housing_is for news on CLPHA’s work to better intersect the housing field and other areas of critical importance such as health and education.
July 29, 2020
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(Washington, D.C.) July 29, 2020 -- CLPHA Executive Director Sunia Zaterman released the following statement on the Republican plan for the next coronavirus relief package, the Heath, Economic Assistance, Liability Protection and Schools Act (“HEALS Act”): "The recently announced Senate Republican version of the latest coronavirus stimulus proposal is noteworthy because public housing and Housing Choice Voucher funding are included. While the amount is not equal to the funding in the HEROES Act, the fact that emergency rental assistance is included in the Republican version indicates a rare bipartisan acknowledgement that public housing and vouchers offer critical, immediate relief to those facing housing instability as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. With the coronavirus showing no signs of abating soon, the need for rental relief will continue to grow. CLPHA urges Republicans and Democrats to continue to prioritize the urgent needs of renters as the stimulus moves through the Congressional process."
About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities |
In yesterday's article "Trust in Public Housing at Stake Over Looming Government Shutdown," YES! Magazine quoted CLPHA Executive Director Sunia Zaterman and CLPHA members Kurt Wiest, Bremerton Housing Authority Executive Director, and Mark Gillett, Oklahoma City Housing Authority Executive Director, on how another government shutdown could continue to sow mistrust in public housing authorities (PHAs) and HUD.
Zaterman, who noted that landlords could shy away from participating in voucher programs if there is concern that PHAs will not pay them, asked, “Just the prospect of payments not being made will have a very disruptive impact—will the federal government contract be honored?”
Wiest stressed the importance of PHAs maintaining a good rapport with landlords. “We work really, really hard to have good relationships with local landlords. And if there’s the slightest hint that they won’t get their subsidy payments as promised, it erodes trust,” said Wiest. “And this program operates on trust.”
Gillett added that if PHAs cannot pay their landlords, there could be dire consequences for tenants. “There is a provision in the law saying if a housing assistance payment isn’t paid, it shouldn’t be grounds for eviction,” Gillett said. “But it’s never been tested.”
On January 31, HUD, the City of New York, and the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) announced an agreement to address longstanding issues at the housing authority’s properties. The agreement establishes specific requirements and milestones for property improvements and establishes a federal monitor who will be selected by HUD and the Southern District of New York, with input from the city.
On Tuesday, New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio appointed Kathryn Garcia, the city’s sanitation commissioner, to succeed Stanley Brezenoff as interim chair until a permanent head of the authority is selected.
Brezenoff, who also serves on CLPHA’s Board of Directors, called the job as NYCHA’s interim chair and CEO, “one of the toughest and most rewarding jobs in America.” In Tuesday’s press release announcing his successor, Brezenoff said, “I will leave this interim role knowing that we are putting NYCHA in very capable hands. I am confident that Commissioner Garcia is the right person to continue our efforts to improve the quality of lives for residents, and preserve public housing for generations to come.”
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette quoted CLPHA Executive Director Sunia Zaterman in an article about the government shutdown's impacts on Section 8 Voucher holders if the shutdown continues beyond March 1.
Zaterman said, “Without a guarantee from HUD that funding will be available in March, many [public housing authorities] will need to notify landlords and residents next month that delayed payments are a possibility. Anxious residents and landlords fearful of missed payments, combined with other cascading impacts due to lack of staffing at HUD, including program grants not being renewed and affordable housing development deals not being approved, amount to an unmitigated disaster for millions of low-income families.”
Today, Gray News Bureau published a comprehensive article "SNAP, WIC, Section 8: Separating fact from fiction in the government shutdown" featuring a quote about the shutdown’s effects on HUD programs from CLPHA Executive Sunia Zaterman. Gray News pulled the quote from CLPHA’s January 16 joint press release with the Campaign for Housing & Community Development Funding (CHCDF), of which CLPHA is a member of the Steering Committee.
On the shutdown's effect on housing authorities' future rental assistance payments, Zaterman said, "Without a guarantee from HUD that funding will be available in March, many Public Housing Authorities will need to notify landlords and residents next month that delayed payments are a possibility. Anxious residents and landlords fearful of missed payments, combined with other cascading impacts due to lack of staffing at HUD, including program grants not being renewed and affordable housing development deals not being approved, amount to an unmitigated disaster for millions of low-income families.”
You can read the article via Gray News Bureau TV affiliates:
CLPHA Executive Director Sunia Zaterman spoke to the Pew Charitable Trust's Stateline blog about the looming crisis facing public housing authorities (PHAs) if the shutdown continues. In today's article "Cities Scramble as Shutdown Leaves Families in Federal Housing Vulnerable," Zaterman warned that if the shutdown is still in effect by the end of February, many PHAs will not have enough funds to continue rental assistance payments for March and beyond.
“It’s definitely an all-hands-on-deck, high-urgency red alert for agencies that don’t have sufficient reserves for a sufficient amount of time,” Zaterman said. “And most don’t.”
From the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh’s press release:
The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP) is very excited to announce receipt of a generous grant in the amount of $150,000 from the Richard King Mellon Foundation. These funds will be used to purchase a new retrofitted RV to host the agency’s new WiFi on Wheels (WOW) initiative – which will bring digital learning and essential Internet access directly to HACP communities and households beginning in 2021.
Bridging the digital divide is a top priority for HACP. By providing residents with internet access during the COVID-19 pandemic, we have helped residents and families gain access to online opportunities and provide opportunities for work and school. During recent years, HACP has invested in a variety of efforts designed to connect residents of low-income public housing programs with access to the Internet as well as the skills and tools needed to conduct their online activities. In 2020, HACP stressed digital literacy and connectivity as essential needs for our households in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This is an opportunity that we’re very grateful for,” said HACP Executive Director Caster D. Binion. “We set out to bridge the digital divide in 2017 when we formally launched ConnectHomePgh with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the City of Pittsburgh. However, 2020 has further reinforced the critical need for households of all income levels to have Internet access and this support will allow us to scale up our programs and bring us closer to that goal.”
From the Seattle Times:
Amazon will direct $2 billion in loans and grants to secure affordable housing near three American cities where the company employs thousands of workers, the tech giant announced Wednesday.
In a first step in the Puget Sound region, Amazon is promising $185.5 million, mostly in loans, to the King County Housing Authority to help buy affordable apartments in the region and keep the rents low. The Housing Authority will use an initial portion of that money to help fund its recent purchase of three Bellevue apartment buildings.
Amazon will also direct about $382 million to a nonprofit in Arlington, Virginia, and so-far unspecified amount to organizations in Nashville, Tennessee. Amazon said it selected the three areas where the company expects to have at least 5,000 employees.
In total across the three regions, the company projected the $2 billion would help preserve or create 20,000 affordable housing units over the next five years. The funding will “help local families achieve long-term stability while building strong, inclusive communities,” Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said in a statement.
The King County Housing Authority plans to pair bond funding with a portion of the $161.5 million in loans and $24 million in grants from Amazon to pay for the three Bellevue buildings with a total of 470 apartments.
As the region gentrifies, affordable apartment buildings are often renovated and their rents are increased, worsening economic and racial segregation, said Stephen Norman, executive director of the King County Housing Authority.
Without preserving some of those more affordable buildings, “we’re dripping water into a bucket with a big hole in the bottom,” Norman said. “This is a long strategy ensuring … that this community doesn’t get hollowed out.”
Congratulations to the seven CLPHA member housing authorities from across the country that were recently awarded HUD Choice Neighborhoods Initiative Planning Grants! Funded through HUD's Choice Neighborhoods program, these grants will help local leaders craft comprehensive, homegrown plans to redevelop and revitalize severely distressed HUD assisted housing communities and their surrounding neighborhoods. CLPHA members received a combined $3.11 million to further these transformation efforts. You can read summaries of all grant recipients’ project plans here.
|
STATE |
CITY |
CLPHA MEMBER RECIPIENT |
NEIGHBORHOOD/AREA |
AMOUNT |
|
OH |
Akron |
Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority |
Summit Lake |
$450,000 |
|
OH |
Cincinnati |
Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority |
West End |
$410,000 |
|
TX |
Houston |
Houston Housing Authority |
Houston Third Ward |
$450,000 |
|
PA |
Pittsburgh |
Fineview Citizens Council Inc. & Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP) |
Northside Choice - Allegheny Dwellings |
$450,000 |
|
CA |
Fresno |
Housing Authority of the City of Fresno, CA |
California Avenue Neighborhood – Southwest Fresno |
$450,000 |
|
OH |
Toledo |
Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority |
McClinton Nunn-Junction |
$450,000 |
|
GA |
Atlanta |
The Housing Authority of the City of Atlanta, Georgia |
Bowen Choice Neighborhood |
$450,000 |
From the Toledo Blade:
Fueled by what he called an impressive year in running an “over-regulated, underfunded agency,” during a pandemic, the president of Lucas Metropolitan Housing pledged Tuesday to offer more to public-housing residents in 2021 during what will be a “breakthrough” year for the agency.
Speaking at the agency’s final board meeting of the year, Joaquin Cintron Vega, the housing authority’s president and chief executive officer, gave an impassioned speech to commissioners, employees, and the public during which he promised to serve tenants with a “sense of compassion” as they face difficulties ahead.
Read the Toledo Blade's article "2021 will be a 'breakthrough' year for agency, says LMH CEO," featuring Lucas Metropolitan Housing.
From Next City:
People who are released from incarceration face unique challenges to participating in society. Returning citizens have no job, little money, and no permanent place to live upon their release. They are sometimes barred from receiving public benefits or accessing public housing. Private landlords and employers may discriminate against them because of their criminal histories. And personal and family relationships may take work to repair.
“When folks go to prison for their crimes, they’re still punished once they come out of prison,” says Jeanice Hardy. “Society itself is not forgiving.”
Hardy is the regional director of family services for the YWCA in King County, Washington. Since 2011, YWCA Seattle King Snohomish, in partnership with the King County Housing Authority, has operated a unique housing project called Passage Point, which provides transitional housing for single parents who are being released from correctional facilities and seeking to reconnect with their young children. The complex includes 46 units of housing, with support services to help residents find work, rebuild relationships with their children, address mental-health challenges, and plan for permanent housing. Residents stay for up to two years. As of early December, according to Kristy Johnson, director of homeless housing initiatives for the King County Housing Authority, there were 97 residents at the Passage Point complex, including 53 children.