2008 Woodie Awards
Vote Absentee
"We've Got Issues..."
Affordable Housing
3/30/07
Nation & World
Nation & World
- Page 1 of 1
“We’ve Got Issues...” will appear in The Hilltop every other Friday. Produced in part by Project Voice, “We’ve Got Issues...” will look at a particular topic that is pertinent in our community. It will also present the basic facts and the perspectives of the conservative and liberal wings. Then it’s your turn: after reading both perspectives, tell us what YOU think.
Issue:
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) states in the Fiscal Year 2008 Budget Summary its core mission is to, “help Americans achieve home ownership, to lend a hand to societies most vulnerable and to ensure equal opportunity in housing options.”
However, within the first few months of the 110th Congress, there as been a growing discussion regarding HUD’s commitment to ensuring minorities, low income citizens and their families are provided adequate funding for housing programs and projects that assist them with home ownership and housing assistance.
Question:
Is HUD Sufficiently Serving the Needs of Minorities and Low-Income Families?
Define Sufficient:
In a land of economic scarcity, sufficiency cannot be measured, for no country could house all of their poor and there is always more that can be done. Year after year, HUD has advocated for an increase in their fiscal year budget, only to find that their request have fallen to deaf ears– leaving them with less than they had prior.
It is easy to criticize the government for what they have not done but why not give them credit for they have. In 2005, HUD introduced the American Dream Down payment Act, Home Counseling Act, Flexible Voucher Program, and since 1974, the Home Choice Voucher Program– all for low income Americans.
The opening remarks of Secretary Alphonso Jackson in the fiscal year budget for 2008 highlights the successes of HUD, and its plan for further success in the future. In this proposal, President Bush proposes 4.5 percent budget increase for the department to push forward a very comprehensive housing program for America’s poor.
As such, HUD is not flawless, they have not housed all of America’s poor, but they have worked, perhaps slower than liked, to make sure that 70 percent of Americans own homes. This question should not focus on Washington bureaucrats, who only implement and administer policy, but those who have the power of the purse- Congress.
-Nyron Crawford
No, They’re Not:
If one were to examine the various agencies within the HUD that provide services to minorities and families that are considered “low income” the findings show a gradual decrease in sufficiency in providing adequate services. According to the Federal Housing Authority (FHA), which was established to assist Americans become homeowners, there was a 17 percent decrease in loans made to minorities looking to own homes in a five-year span (2000-2005).
This decrease in sufficient services is not only limited to the FHA. The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher is noted as the most significant way for the federal government to prevent homelessness among poor families. The National Low Income Housing Coalition highlights “increased affordability is one of two core goals of the [housing choice] voucher program. The other is increased mobility of extremely low income households, allowing them the choice to move to communities of opportunity for better jobs and better schools.”
Shelia Crowley, President of the Nation Low Income Housing Coalition noted in a testimony before the House of Representatives on March 8, 2007, “there are 9,022,000 extremely low income renter households and only 6,746,000 homes renting at prices these households can afford, paying the standard of 30 percent of their income for housing.”
While groups like NLIHC agree major changes need to be made in regards to the programs such as Section 8, they have not been in total agreement with the Bush Administration and HUD administration. Most changes that have been recommended by HUD to change the housing choice voucher program are said to reduce its effectiveness in meeting the core goals of the program.
The proposed Presidential Fiscal Year 2008 Budget for HUD continues to undermine a wholistic commitment to sufficiently serve minorities and low income families with housing assistance and home ownership.
-Marcus T. Coleman Jr.
Issue:
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) states in the Fiscal Year 2008 Budget Summary its core mission is to, “help Americans achieve home ownership, to lend a hand to societies most vulnerable and to ensure equal opportunity in housing options.”
However, within the first few months of the 110th Congress, there as been a growing discussion regarding HUD’s commitment to ensuring minorities, low income citizens and their families are provided adequate funding for housing programs and projects that assist them with home ownership and housing assistance.
Question:
Is HUD Sufficiently Serving the Needs of Minorities and Low-Income Families?
Define Sufficient:
In a land of economic scarcity, sufficiency cannot be measured, for no country could house all of their poor and there is always more that can be done. Year after year, HUD has advocated for an increase in their fiscal year budget, only to find that their request have fallen to deaf ears– leaving them with less than they had prior.
It is easy to criticize the government for what they have not done but why not give them credit for they have. In 2005, HUD introduced the American Dream Down payment Act, Home Counseling Act, Flexible Voucher Program, and since 1974, the Home Choice Voucher Program– all for low income Americans.
The opening remarks of Secretary Alphonso Jackson in the fiscal year budget for 2008 highlights the successes of HUD, and its plan for further success in the future. In this proposal, President Bush proposes 4.5 percent budget increase for the department to push forward a very comprehensive housing program for America’s poor.
As such, HUD is not flawless, they have not housed all of America’s poor, but they have worked, perhaps slower than liked, to make sure that 70 percent of Americans own homes. This question should not focus on Washington bureaucrats, who only implement and administer policy, but those who have the power of the purse- Congress.
-Nyron Crawford
No, They’re Not:
If one were to examine the various agencies within the HUD that provide services to minorities and families that are considered “low income” the findings show a gradual decrease in sufficiency in providing adequate services. According to the Federal Housing Authority (FHA), which was established to assist Americans become homeowners, there was a 17 percent decrease in loans made to minorities looking to own homes in a five-year span (2000-2005).
This decrease in sufficient services is not only limited to the FHA. The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher is noted as the most significant way for the federal government to prevent homelessness among poor families. The National Low Income Housing Coalition highlights “increased affordability is one of two core goals of the [housing choice] voucher program. The other is increased mobility of extremely low income households, allowing them the choice to move to communities of opportunity for better jobs and better schools.”
Shelia Crowley, President of the Nation Low Income Housing Coalition noted in a testimony before the House of Representatives on March 8, 2007, “there are 9,022,000 extremely low income renter households and only 6,746,000 homes renting at prices these households can afford, paying the standard of 30 percent of their income for housing.”
While groups like NLIHC agree major changes need to be made in regards to the programs such as Section 8, they have not been in total agreement with the Bush Administration and HUD administration. Most changes that have been recommended by HUD to change the housing choice voucher program are said to reduce its effectiveness in meeting the core goals of the program.
The proposed Presidential Fiscal Year 2008 Budget for HUD continues to undermine a wholistic commitment to sufficiently serve minorities and low income families with housing assistance and home ownership.
-Marcus T. Coleman Jr.
Be the first to comment on this story