The Opportunity Starts at Home (OSAH) campaign sent a letter to appropriators urging them to include a House proposal to expand Housing Choice Vouchers to an additional 125,000 households in the fiscal year (FY) 2022 spending bill. Substantially expanding rental assistance for people with the lowest incomes is essential to any successful strategy for solving the nation’s affordable housing crisis. Due to chronic under-funding and disinvestment, only one in four households eligible federal housing assistance receives the help it needs. The letter was signed by 17 leading national organizations from an array of sectors and included the Church World Service, Healthcare Anchor Network, National Education Association, National League of Cities, and others.
The FY22 spending bill provides an opportunity to obtain a tremendous return on investment by expanding the Housing Choice Voucher program. Leading national organizations from a range of sectors – including health, education, civil rights, food security, environmental protection, faith, municipal governance, child welfare, criminal justice, and anti-poverty sectors – have come together through the Opportunity Starts at Home campaign to push for such expanded investments. Despite their differing issue areas, these organizations understand that achieving their goals requires ensuring that people have access to stable, affordable homes and that expanding rental assistance is an important step toward this aim.
Read the campaign’s letter here.