Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Housing

“SEVRA” Housing Voucher Reform Bill Would Update and Streamline Program
But Deregulation Provision Holds Significant Risks

“The Section 8 Voucher Reform Act (SEVRA) would make important improvements to the housing voucher program, which helps 2 million low-income families find affordable housing in the private market. Congressional action on the bill is urgent given widespread foreclosures and rising homelessness and poverty…

“However, a deleterious provision of SEVRA would sharply expand the Moving-to-Work demonstration…. The expansion would be much larger than is needed to test and evaluate alternative policies. This aspect of the bill could have adverse effects, including exposing close to 750,000 low-income families to policies such as rent increases, unless Congress limits the expansion and institutes certain protections related to it.” Read more

Topics

Basics

Policy Basics: The Housing Voucher Choice Program:
The Housing Choice Voucher Program, (“Section 8”), the nation’s largest federal low-income housing program, provides roughly 2 million low-income families with vouchers they can use to rent housing of their choice in the private market.

Policy Basics: Introduction to Public Housing:
The nation’s 14,000 public housing developments, generally owned and operated by local agencies, provide homes to more than 2 million low-income Americans, most of whom are elderly or have a disability.

Featured Experts

Will Fischer

Reports | Bio
Douglas Rice

Reports | Bio

The Center works with state and local housing agencies and advocates to improve the effectiveness of federal low-income housing programs — particularly the Housing Choice Voucher Program. We also examine the role that well-designed housing assistance programs can play in advancing goals such as reducing the concentration of poverty.