Office of Rep. Derek Kilmer press release.
On Monday, U.S. Representative Derek Kilmer (WA-06) joined Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15) and over 120 colleagues in Congress to express support for keeping robust affordable housing investments in the Build Back Better Act. The letter, which was sent to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Leader Chuck Schumer, calls for any final legislation to include investments in affordable, accessible homes for America’s lowest-income and most marginalized people.
“Even before the pandemic, America was in the grips of an affordable housing crisis, most severely impacting the most marginalized and lowest-income people, including seniors, people with disabilities, families with children, and others. Nationally, there is a shortage of 7 million homes affordable and available to renters with extremely low incomes. For every 10 of these households, there are fewer than 4 affordable and available homes. There is not a single state or congressional district with enough affordable homes to meet this demand,” the lawmakers wrote.
They continued, “As this legislation advances in Congress, we urge you to ensure that funding levels for rental assistance, public housing and the Housing Trust Fund match the amounts included in the bill approved by the House Financial Services Committee […] Taken together, these investments could effectively end homelessness in the United States. Any cuts to funding for these priority programs means fewer people safely and affordably housed.”
Specifically, the lawmakers called for:
- $90 billion to expand rental assistance to 1 million additional households.
- $80 billion to address the Public Housing repair backlog for 2.5 million residents.
- $37 billion for the National Housing Trust Fund to build and preserve 330,000 homes affordable to people with the greatest needs.
“Kitsap Community Resources, as our area’s only community action agency, is grateful for legislation supporting affordable housing for our residents. Between September 2020 through July 2021, KCR has assisted 1,749 households with rent and/or utility payments. Nearly $7.7 million was paid to landlords and utility providers to prevent evictions,” said Stacy B. Doré, Director of Development at Kitsap Community Resources. “Our advocacy on behalf of Kitsap residents is supported through investments such as this – and we’re grateful that Rep. Kilmer remains a strong advocate at the federal level for getting this included in the Build Back Better Act.”
“Throughout the COVID pandemic, it’s been clear to me that housing is healthcare,” said Diana Tyree-Eddy, group co-leader of RESULTS Bremerton/North Kitsap. “I work as a Head Start teacher with the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe and know families who have needlessly suffered an extra-long time with COVID because they live in multigenerational cramped housing. Kids in my classroom missed out over a month from school as one after the other of their siblings and/or adult caregivers caught COVID. These are kids that need to be in school and their cramped housing situation exacerbated their healthcare and educational outcomes. These investments are long overdue, and Rep. Kilmer is wise and compassionate to advocate for them.”
The letter is endorsed by National Low Income Housing Coalition, National Alliance to End Homelessness, and RESULTS.
See the text of the letter here.
Excuse me!
$90 billion to expand rental assistance to 1 million additional households.
$80 billion to address the Public Housing repair backlog for 2.5 million residents.
$37 billion for the National Housing Trust Fund to build and preserve 330,000 homes affordable to people with the greatest needs.
Try this instead -take the $90 billion and the $37 billion and at least half of the $80 billion – put it all in to the building of quality housing to flood the market with at cost plus minimal to own transaction fees. Sell to people that want them only as primary homes and have to remain in these homes for at least 10 years or return them to the govt at the difference between what the home owner paid on any loan (principal) and the cost when purchased less any damages and neglect willfully done to the house/property.
The only way to get affordable housing to the masses of lower and lower middle income families in our country is to increase supply to water down market cost for housing (currently due to high demand and greed of private providers/landlords).
Housing is a basic need of all human beings so why is it one of the number one things Americans get the wealth from? It should be a common, easier to obtain, affordable commodity we all can count on.
I really loathe the idea of hiring a lot of private companies to come in a bid up contracts to fix current limited public housing units. Public owned buildings should have superintendents that live on site and take pride in their home as well as the building and along with a free unit for their family, receive a fair salary and benefits. Stop putting so much tax payer money in the hands of contractors, pop up non-profits and private landlords hands.
Make it harder to be a greedy landlord in WA state while the powers that be are at it!
It doesn’t help that at least 1.9 million illegal immigrants have crossed our border in the last nine months! Historic numbers!