Republicans work to increase homelessness

Author

Kay W.
May 09, 2025

In its request for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the White House called the current system of federal rental assistance "dysfunctional" and proposed essentially ending Section 8 and other housing voucher programs.

The proposal comes as nearly half of all renters are considered cost-burdened and as homelessness is at a record high. Advocates say that if millions of poor people barely making ends meet were to suddenly see their rental aid shrink — or even end altogether — it would tip many over the edge.

"We would see, I think, homelessness escalate in a way that has been really unprecedented, and unheard of," said Kim Johnson, policy manager with the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

Already, federal rental aid falls far short of need. It's available for only about a quarter of all people eligible for it. "Cutting that really feels like cutting into bone," said Ann Oliva, CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

We have two Section 8-qualified apartment complexes in my rural Ohio county. One complex is two blocks from my office and just loaded with kids - probably thirty kids waiting for the school bus there in the morning. I have no idea where those families are going to go.

Here’s a good explainer from (the wonderful) Propublica on how Section 8 vouchers work.

The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program is a form of government rent assistance. When Congress established Section 8 of the Housing and Community Development Act in 1974, one of the goals was to make sure people earning low wages could find “decent housing and a suitable living environment” outside of public housing units.

Today, people who meet income requirements can apply to the program to receive a voucher when they become available. If they are approved, selected and then find an apartment or house with the voucher, their local housing authority starts sending payments directly to landlords. The payments cover some or all of the voucher holder’s rent. On average, each household will pay somewhere between 30% and 40% of its income on rent.

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