In the most recent (October 10) call for the national HoUSed campaign, we heard from Eric Tars of the National Homelessness Law Center (NHLC) about NHLC’s Human Right to Housing Report Card. Rebecca Yae of the Housing Initiative at Penn and NLIHC’s Sophie-Siebach-Glover discussed a new report on tenant and landlord experiences with emergency rental assistance. Courtney Cooperman gave updates on NLIHC’s Our Homes, Our Votes campaign. We also received news from the field, and more.
In his remarks, Eric Tars explained that the concept of “housing as a human right” is not just a rallying slogan but a rich source of legal norms. “Right to Housing” language is a practical tool that can be used by advocates to hold their governments accountable, according to Eric. The National Homelessness Law Center’s Human Right to Housing Report Card is a contribution to the human right to housing movement. Grading the country in seven categories, the report card concludes that the U.S. earns an “F” when it comes to ensuring affordable housing. The report card also shows that as of 2023, there is not a single state or county in the U.S. where a full-time worker making minimum wage can afford to rent a modest two-bedroom apartment. The report card recommends that U.S. federal government agencies permanently implement COVID-19 policies, like emergency rental assistance, expand monthly child tax credits and renters’ credits, and ensure universal housing affordability outside of the annual appropriations process.
Next, Rebecca Yae from the Housing Initiative at Penn and NLIHC’s Sophie Siebach-Glover discussed a new report, Beyond Housing Stability: Understanding Tenant and Landlord Experiences and the Impact of Emergency Rental Assistance. The research leading up to the report had three primary goals: to understand the characteristics of renter households that applied for emergency rental assistance (ERA); to explore the experiences of program administrators, tenants, and landlords; and to measure the short-term impacts of ERA on housing stability, financial security, and physical and mental health. Ten sites participated in the study, including local programs, state programs, and one tribal program, and the research used quantitative as well as qualitative approaches. Tenant surveys were administered to all 10 sites, generating just under 11,000 responses. The research found that tenants who applied for ERA were more housing secure and less financially precarious. It also found that tenants with ERA had better access to healthcare compared to their counterparts without assistance.
Courtney Cooperman provided updates on NLIHC’s Our Homes, Our Votes campaign. Courtney explained that boosting voter turnout among low-income renters is critical to achieving housing justice. Renters persistently turn out to vote at lower rates than homeowners, and Courtney offered numerous ways for advocates to help reverse this pattern. Courtney encouraged advocates to reach out to her directly at [email protected] to get involved.
Sabine Brown with Oklahoma Policy Institute and Brian Wilson of the Alaska Coalition on Housing and Homelessness joined the call to share field updates. Sabine Brown stated that Oklahoma leads the nation in evictions (see Memo 6/12). One of the most significant pieces of legislation passed recently in Oklahoma was a $215 million investment in the Oklahoma Stability Program. Funding for the housing program will be used to make interest free loans for developers to build single-family homes for purchase and provide down payment assistance and gap financing for single and multifamily rental units. The funding is intended to provide “workforce” housing for those making 80% or AMI or less. The program is not intended to target Oklahoma’s extremely low-income families. Advocates are hoping to build off the program to prioritize extremely low-income families who are experiencing the housing shortage most acutely.
Brian Wilson of the Alaska Coalition on Housing and Homelessness discussed a recent visit from HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge, explaining that advocates in Alaska and Alaska’s federal delegation had been pushing for the meeting since spring. During the visit, highlighted in NLIHC’s 8/28 Memo, Secretary Fudge witnessed firsthand the unique housing issues faced by Alaskans and discussed solutions to advocates’ concerns.
Finally, NLIHC’s Sarah Saadian discussed recent events in Congress, including former Speaker McCarthy’s removal from the Speakership and harmful amendments in the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill (THUD). Sarah urged advocates to contact their senators and representatives to urge them to expand – not cut – investments in affordable, accessible homes through the FY24 spending bill. Sarah summarized amendments that could be added to the THUD appropriations bill and would cut federal investments in affordable housing and harm America’s lowest-income and most marginalized households. Sarah concluded by urging advocates to contact their House Representatives to oppose any harmful amendments that would further cut HUD funding, undermine fair housing and racial equity, or prevent marginalized people from accessing the resources they need. Finally, Sarah urged organizations to join over 2,100 organizations by signing on to a national letter from the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding (CHCDF) calling on Congress to oppose budget cuts and instead to support the highest level of funding possible for affordable housing, homelessness, and community development resources in FY24.
National calls take place every other week. Our next call will be held on October 23 at 2:30 pm ET. Register for the call at: https://tinyurl.com/ru73qan