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The White House has just released a summary of the President’s American Family Plan (AFP). It includes important and in some cases transformative investments to support families and build a more equitable economy. Thread/
My colleagues @centeronbudget are highlighting some of these investments in tax credits, child care, health, education.
https://www.cbpp.org/press/statements/parrott-presidents-recovery-agenda-is-an-ambitious-plan-to-tackle-big-problems #EquitableRecovery
https://www.cbpp.org/press/statements/parrott-presidents-recovery-agenda-is-an-ambitious-plan-to-tackle-big-problems #EquitableRecovery
But the plan is missing an essential element: investments to help more families, particularly renters with incomes near or below the poverty line, afford decent, stable homes.
Housing often consumes the largest share of families’ budgets, and high housing costs are endemic, especially among poor renters. Some 11M renters pay >50% of their income for housing & nearly ¾ of these have incomes near or below the poverty line. (Chart by @NLIHC)
This problem is widespread — large shares of poor renters in nearly every community struggle to pay rent. It isn’t just a problem in high-cost coastal areas. https://apps.urban.org/features/rental-housing-crisis-map/
It’s also a problem that falls disproportionately on people of color. https://www.cbpp.org/majority-of-low-income-renters-with-severe-cost-burdens-are-people-of-color
High housing costs put enormous stress on low-income families, contributing to food insecurity, housing instability and homelessness, overcrowding, and other severe hardships.
Such hardships hurt children in many ways, making it much more difficult for them to succeed in school and later as adults. https://www.cbpp.org/blog/rental-assistance-in-recovery-legislation-needed-to-protect-children-from-hardship-and-help
This problem is also solvable: Research shows that Housing Choice Vouchers and other rental assistance are highly effective at reducing housing costs, poverty, housing instability and homelessness, overcrowding, and other hardships. https://www.cbpp.org/housing-choice-vouchers-sharply-reduce-families-housing-instability
One study found that giving all eligible households vouchers would cut the child poverty rate by 1/3, as well as reduce the gap in poverty rates between white and Black households by over 1/3 and between white and Hispanic households by nearly half. https://www.cbpp.org/expanding-housing-vouchers-to-all-eligible-households-would-cut-poverty-and-reduce-racial
Because housing vouchers are portable, they also expand families’ housing options in well-resourced communities with strong schools and other opportunities, which research shows improves children’s chances of attending college and earning more as adults.
https://www.cbpp.org/moving-with-voucher-to-lower-poverty-neighborhoods-while-young-children-improves-key-adult-9
https://www.cbpp.org/moving-with-voucher-to-lower-poverty-neighborhoods-while-young-children-improves-key-adult-9
Expanding housing options is important, especially for Black families who, because of the long history of discriminatory laws and policies that have limited their options, too often live in segregated communities with fewer of the resources their children need to thrive.
This is why during the campaign, President Biden put forth a plan to expand housing vouchers to every eligible household. Currently, only 1 in 4 eligible households has a voucher because of inadequate funding.
To be sure, the AFP includes historic investments that will increase poor families’ incomes and reduce child care and other expenses, which will ease the stress that high housing costs put on them.
The robust housing capital investments that the President proposed in the American Jobs Plan will also help, though they will do little for the large share of renters with incomes near or below the poverty line who need the most help. https://www.cbpp.org/blog/solving-urgent-housing-problems-requires-pairing-investments-in-housing-stock-with-expansion
While important, the President’s proposals to date will thus leave millions struggling to pay the rent, including parents working in low-paid jobs & seniors and people with disabilities with low fixed incomes.
Congress should rectify this gap in the President's proposals by adding mandatory, multi-year funding to make housing vouchers available to many more low-income renters to rent decent, stable homes in communities that best meet their needs. /end thread https://www.cbpp.org/research/housing/more-housing-vouchers-most-important-step-to-help-more-people-afford-stable-homes
