Fully Fund & Preserve Public Housing
Week 3 of our campaign we urge Congress to fully fund and preserve Public Housing. Over 1.6 million people count on the critical housing assistance public housing provides. However, chronic disinvestment and deferred maintenance have significantly impacted public housing units. Inflation and years of rising costs have made it difficult for PHAs to conduct day to day operations and insure their properties under current funding levels. This week, tell your members of Congress to fully fund Public Housing so PHAs can continue to provide permanent, deeply subsidized housing assistance in our communities.
August Advocacy In Action
NAHRO Advocates have knocked the first two weeks of our 2024 August Advocacy campaign out of the park! So far, 2,546 advocates have sent more than 31,000 letters to Washington, D.C. to advocate for full funding of HUD programs, including Housing Choice Vouchers. You can follow our progress at the bottom of our August Advocacy page on the Action Alert Center.
Thank you for raising your voice and advocating for NAHRO!
Public Housing In Minnesota
Federal Public Housing is home to 22,000 Minnesotans including 5,250 kids and 11,000 seniors. Average household income is $17,781 per year, about 22% of the state’s median income. Public Housing provides stable housing for those who often face the biggest barriers.
Public housing is a critical affordable housing tool, particularly in rural parts of Greater Minnesota where federal public housing may be the only rentals available to our most vulnerable households. More than 75% of Minnesota’s public housing buildings have 100 units or less and almost half have 50 units or less.
There is a backlog of $172 million of unmet capital needs in Minnesota’s Public Housing. The state of Minnesota has stepped in because of the lack of appropriations to Public Housing Capital Funds. These capital needs persist even with the $227 million of federal capital funds and Minnesota’s investment of $103 million in Public Housing rehabilitation loans.
There is a great demand for these units, the number of units doesn’t match the number of eligible renters. No new public housing units have been added since 1999.
