Sign-on Letter: Don't Let Congress Increase Rent for Low-Income Families!
New legislation has been passed in subcommittee and is waiting for full approval in the House of Representatives holds worrying news for low-income households. The Housing Affordability Act requires housing agencies and owners to charge families higher rent--an almost $20 increase per month from the current minimum rent law.
While current law lets agencies adjust minimum rents based on circumstance--and about 26 percent of ages do use that discretion--the Housing Affordability act removes this flexibility and would increase rent substantially for nearly half a million of the nation's poorest households. Two thirds of such houeholds have young children and a disproportionate number have kids of preschool age.
About 700,000 kids today living in these 500,000 households that would be impacted by this increase in rent.
The bill is a little under the radar for those not focused on housing, so the Children's Leadership Council has created a sign-on letter for organizations to House Chairman Bacchas and Ranking Member Frank as well as bipartisan leadership opposing the new provisins of the Housing Affordability Act.
For more on the Housing Affordability Act and the new provisions, including state-by-state breakdowns read this analysis from the Center on Budget Policy & Priorities.
Act now! Sign and spread this sign-on letter to all known organizations working on family economic issues!
What's next: The Children's Leadership Council and it's members will work with committee, and learn more about the likeliness that the President will accomodate on parts of these new provisions to keep the issue moving.
The likeliness that this will pass is unknown, but the more action taken on this issue through the sign-on letter, the more power housing and low-income family advocates have against the issue.
