We wanted to help answer this important question. With new reform legislation pending in Congress - Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act of 2008 - this is a question that needs to be answered. Over the last month we have posted several articles about the Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act of 2008 (HR 5772). This is a program worth saving and the proposed legislation will ensure its continued success.
For a more detailed answer we reprint Ann O’Hara’s answer in Opening Doors.
Some federal officials have asked “Why save Section 811? There are other HUD programs that can create permanent supportive housing.” The reasons to save the Section 811 program are clear and compelling. Most importantly, Section 811 is the only federal program solely dedicated to addressing the housing crisis facing millions of extremely low-income people with significant and long-term disabilities who also need access to services and supports to live successfully in the community. In addition, Section 811 is one of the very few remaining HUD programs that can provide the essential project-based rent subsidy needed to ensure that rents in new permanent supportive housing units are affordable for the most vulnerable people with disabilities with the lowest incomes.
Merely “tinkering” with the Section 811 statute will not be enough to save it. To effectively respond to the housing choices and service approaches preferred by most people with disabilities - and to produce new permanent supportive housing units at the scale needed - the Section 811 program must be reformed and revitalized by Congress. This new approach to Section 811 must bring the program into alignment with the other major government programs that fund affordable rental housing in the United States today - particularly the federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program and HUD’s HOME program.
Under the provisions of HR 5772, new high quality rental units in properties produced through the LIHTC and HOME programs (as well as other state/local government affordable housing resources) can be targeted for the lowest-income people with disabilities and linked with the community-based supportive services they want and need. The vision for this new Section 811 approach includes small set-asides of permanent supportive housing units integrated within larger rental housing developments funded routinely each year by state and local governments. For example, a new 100 unit LIHTC property could include ten 811-funded permanent supportive housing units. Or a non-profit organization could create a “mixed income” rental property that incorporated 15 permanent supportive housing units financed with Section 811 funds within a 60 unit building.
This issue of Opening Doors is devoted to the future of a revitalized and reinvigorated Section 811 program that could produce thousands more new units of permanent supportive housing every year. It is also dedicated to the memory of Frank Melville, the first chair of the Melville Charitable Trust, whose vision and commitment sparked the creation of thousands of permanent supportive housing units in Connecticut and many other states. In recognition of his efforts, it is fitting that this important supportive housing legislation bears his name.
During the coming months, it is critically important that the disability community speak with one voice to vigorously support HR 5772, along with a companion Section 811 bill that will soon be introduced in the Senate. The disability community must also seek the support of other organizations and groups that will be critical to the future success of the Section 811. This includes state Housing Finance Agencies, state health and human services agencies, local governments, and service providers who are committed to the principal of community integration. This must be done on behalf of the millions of people with disabilities in our country today who are waiting for an integrated permanent supportive housing unit of their own in the community.
We recommend the entire current issue of Opening Doors that provides information on this important issue. Click here to read our previous posts. Click here to read Opening Doors in PDF or here to read it online.
Tags: Advocacy, Andrew Sperling, CCD, Christopher Murphy, Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act, Judy Biggert, Liz Savage, permanent supportive housing, Supportive Housing
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