Section 8 shortfall: Many tenants could lose their homes

by Thalia Gigerenzer, Intern

According to an April 17, 2008 press release from the organization Southside Together Organizing for Power (STOP), the amount of money available to renew all Section 8 contracts that expire during Federal Fiscal Year 2008 for a full one year term would currently fall short $2 billion of the required amount, $8.1 billion. This shortfall was disclosed to Congress in a letter from John Cox, HUD’s Chief Financial Officer, to the House Financial Services Committee in November. According to affordable housing activists, this shortfall could cause the mass displacement and/or homelessness of the 1.3 million families housed by the program, resulting either in low income households having to pay triple rents to cover operating costs or in tenants facing foreclosure themselves.

Former HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson's resignation has stalled discussions on how to address the shortfall.

On April 18, 2008, tenant leaders met with U.S. Reps. Jan Schakowsky and Danny Davis and staff from the offices of Sen. Dick Durbin and Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. at 920 W. Lakeside, a HUD subsidized building on Chicago's North Side to discuss the crisis. The meeting was organized by a “network of community based organizations who work with HUD tenants to preserve their subsidized housing,” according to the news brief, including organizations such as the Jane Addams Senior Caucus, Kenwood Oakland Community Organization, Lakeview Action Coalition, Logan Square Neighborhood Association, Metropolitan Tenants Organization, National Training and Information Center, Organization of the Northeast, and Southside Together Organizing for Power.