Community Housing Plans: An Opportunity for Advocacy

1. Community Housing Plans: An Opportunity for Advocacy Presented by: Ann V. Denton The Enterprise Foundation 512.458.3200

2. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The Consolidated Plan: This is a strategic plan required by HUD of all communities that receive HOME, CDBG, Emergency Shelter Grants, and HOPWA. NOTE: Most communities were required to write a NEW, five year plan in 2000. These communities are now submitting annual updates.

3. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The Consolidated Plan is the community’s plan for affordable housing and community development activities. The Consolidated Plan is the community’s application for funds in these categories. The Consolidated Plan lays out performance measures for the community in these areas.

4. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The Consolidated Plan is an application for the following funds: • Community Development Block Grants • Emergency Shelter Grants • HOME Program • Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS

5. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy HOME Investment Partnership Program • Owner occupied housing assistance • Rental project assistance • Homebuyer assistance • Tenant based rental assistance • Note: available from the state AND through units of local government

6. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Emergency Shelter Grants • Rehabilitation of shelter structures • Essential services • Operations and Maintenance • Homelessness Prevention • Note: available from the state AND units of local government.

7. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Community Development Block Grants • frequently used for infrastructure • can be used for housing assistance

8. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS • Provides rental assistance • Usually awarded to non-profit service providers

9. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The Consolidated Plan describes need, including an analysis of the housing market, describes the community strategy to meet need, and describes planned resource allocations. Millions of dollars are at stake!!

10. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The Plan must: • estimate housing needs (for 3 or 5 years) • describe “priority” housing needs • estimate housing need by income category and family type • distinguish between renters and owners • describe housing needs of people with disabilities and HIV/AIDS • describe homelessness and community strategy

11. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Too often, communities overlook or deliberately ignore the neediest households.

12. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Too often, communities target ALL of their resources to people just at or under the HUD definition of low income. Or, communities choose to assist people in obtaining home ownership rather than to assist renters.

13. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Low Income households are defined by HUD as at or below 80% of median family income. This varies by community. In Austin, for a family of four, 80% of median family income is about $44,000. In contrast, people on SSI (disability income) make less than $7,000 per year. People who are homeless may be making even less.

14. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Home Ownership is a goal for all Americans, but the poorest among us may have to work towards this goal. When a community provides assistance ONLY towards homeownership, or ONLY for home owners, that community has abandoned households who are most in need.

15. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Review the current Consolidated Plan for your community. • Does the plan include targeted resources for those most in need? • Does the plan discuss homelessness? Housing needs of people with disabilities? • Does the plan share resources between renters and home owners?

16. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy If you discover that your current Consolidated Plan does not meet the needs of the lowest income households in your community, here are some things you can do: • provide data on the housing needs of your group • provide examples of successful housing projects that can be copied

17. The Consolidated Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Know what to ask for! Examples - • A Fair Share of available resources for people who are most in need. • Targeted resources to the lowest levels of income - No Household Left Behind!! • Tenant based rental assistance.

18. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy The Continuum of Care is a locally based planning process designed to create a continuum of services, supports and housing that will enable homeless people in your community to exit homelessness.

19. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy The planning process should be inclusive of all stakeholders: • People who are or have been homeless • City leaders, other decision makers • Service providers • Housing providers

20. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy Your community must have “one, well-coordinated” planning process.

21. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy An effective Continuum of Care Planning Process is the basic minimum requirement for a competitive application to HUD for assistance under the McKinney/Vento Act.

22. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy What can you apply for? • Supportive Housing • Shelter Plus Care • Single Room Occupancy

23. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy Programs fundable under the Supportive Housing Program • Transitional Housing • Permanent Housing for People with Disabilities • Safe Haven • Supportive Services only • Innovative Supportive Housing

24. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy What is Shelter Plus Care? Shelter Plus Care provides rental assistance and requires a dollar for dollar match in services. Shelter Plus Care is targeted to people with disabilities.

25. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy In order to participate, a person must be homeless AND have a disability. The disability can be physical, mental or emotional, and disability due solely to alcohol or drug abuse IS included.

26. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy Single Room Occupancy Projects • SRO housing contains units for occupancy by one person. • The units may contain food preparation or sanitary facilities, or both (although they are not REQUIRED to contain either).

27. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy Single Room Occupancy Projects This program provides rental assistance, NOT rehabilitation financing. However, rental assistance can pay operating expenses and debt service for rehabilitation financed by other sources. The calculation of rental subsidies in the budget includes an allowance for rehabilitation debt service.

28. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy Each community is encouraged to have a Continuum of Care planning process. HUD has an organizational goal of 100% of affected communities will participate in this planning process.

29. The Continuum of Care: An Opportunity for Advocacy The planning process should be year round, with intense activity occurring in preparation for the SuperNOFA submission.

30. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Public Housing Authorities (as of 2000) must submit a five year plan to administer public housing and the Section 8 program. Just like the ConPlan, the PHA Plan must be updated annually.

31. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The plan must include a description of housing needs in the community served by the PHA. The description must include the housing needs of people with disabilities, including people with mental illness.

32. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy If they are doing this right, they will be coming to you for information!

33. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The PHA Plan will tell you whether or not the PHA has designated their public housing units “elderly only” or if people with disabilities are eligible for public housing.

34. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The PHA plan will tell you if the PHA has designated public housing units as elderly only, the plan must tell you how the PHA plans to obtain additional Section 8 vouchers for people with disabilities.

35. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The PHA plan will tell you If people with disabilities are allowed in public housing units, the plan will describe eligibility, tenant selection and admission policies.

36. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy The PHA Plan must be developed with the input of a Resident Advisory Board. Membership on the Resident Advisory Board includes residents of public housing units and current Section 8 recipients.

37. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy In addition to the Resident Advisory Board, the PHA plan must also have at least one public hearing prior to submission to HUD.

38. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Opportunities for advocacy include recruiting a sympathetic member of the Resident Advisory Board. Remember this can be a current recipient of Section 8.

39. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy Opportunities for advocacy include educating your group about the PHA plan and presenting information at the public hearing about the needs of people with disabilities.

40. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy What to ask for? • A Fair Share of resources in this plan means a specific number of units or Section 8 vouchers designated for people with disabilities.

41. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy What to ask for? • A Fair Share in this plan includes PHA participation in the Mainstream Housing resources annual competition.

42. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy What to ask for? • A Fair Share here includes the planned use of Section 8 resources to help low income families achieve home ownership.

43. Public Housing Authority Plan: An Opportunity for Advocacy What to ask for? • A Fair Share includes ensuring that PHA operations explicitly plan for the participation of people with disabilities.

44. Community Housing Plans: An Opportunity for Advocacy Provide Public Testimony The Consolidated Plan and the PHA Plan control the use of millions of dollars of resources. Communities and the PHAs are REQUIRED to hold public hearings on plan contents.

45. Community Housing Plans: An Opportunity for Advocacy Typical ConPlan Argument Argument: The “Bang for the Buck” argument. Why should we try to help households that are at the lowest income levels? At those levels, it costs more per household. It is a better use funds to serve as many households as possible.

46. Community Housing Plans: An Opportunity for Advocacy Countering the “Bang for the Buck” argument: These are public funds. Are we, as a community, prepared to abandon our citizens who are most in need? The most appropriate use of public funds is to assist households the private sector cannot reach - the poorest of the poor.

47. Community Housing Plans: An Opportunity for Advocacy Countering Typical ConPlan Arguments Argument: We’d like to help more poor people, but the numbers just won’t work.

48. Community Housing Plans: An Opportunity for Advocacy Countering “the numbers just won’t work” argument Your development plan needs to include multiple funding sources, at least one of which is rental assistance. Rental assistance allows the development of mixed income projects.

49. Community Housing Plans: An Opportunity for Advocacy Typical PHA Argument: HUD doesn’t require us to designate people with disabilities as a special preference. (and you can’t make us, is the usual unspoken message).

50. Community Housing Plans: An Opportunity for Advocacy Countering the “HUD doesn’t require this” argument: HUD does require a public hearing and that the PHA plan be developed with “consultation with affected groups”. You must comply with this requirement. (Yes, we can make you!)