Carl,
Ben Carson is the guy who described Africans coming to North America as a
choice identical to that of other immigrants. If he doesn't recognize that his
ancestors were brought here as slaves, what can we expect?
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Friday, May 04, 2018 7:56 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Trump Plan to Raise Minimum Rents Would Put
Nearly a Million Children at Risk of Homelessness
Doctor. Ben Carson: Public Enemy #1 of many.
How can a man with any dribble of African Blood in his veins put the shaft to
the little children of the poorest of the poor? Where is that fellow who
claims that we all have equal opportunity?
Carl Jarvis
On 5/4/18, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Trump Plan to Raise Minimum Rents Would Put Nearly a Million Children
at Risk of Homelessness Friday, May 04, 2018 By Alicia Mazzara,
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities | Report The Henry Rutgers
Houses, a public housing development built and maintained by the New
York City Housing Authority, stand in in the Lower East Side of
Manhattan, April 26, 2018, in New York City. Housing and Urban
Development Secretary Ben Carson has proposed changes to federal
housing subsidies, potentially tripling rent for some households and
making it easier for housing authorities to impose work requirements.
(Photo: Drew Angerer / Getty Images)
Under President Trump's proposal to raise rents by up to $1,800 a year
on the poorest households receiving federal rental assistance --
virtually all of which have annual incomes of less than $7,000 --
roughly 1.7 million people (including nearly 1 million children) would
face eviction, hardship, and homelessness.
The proposal would raise rents on people receiving rental assistance
from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in several
different ways. One is by raising the "minimum rent" for assisted households.
Currently, assisted households generally must pay 30 percent of their
income for rent. Public housing agencies, however, may require
households to pay a minimum rent of up to $50 per month, and
households in Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance pay a minimum
rent of $25 per month -- even if that exceeds 30 percent of their
income. The Trump proposal would raise the monthly minimum rent for
any household with an adult younger than 65 who is not considered
disabled to at least $152 and make it mandatory. That would triple the
rent for affected households now paying a $50 minimum.
(The
proposal would set the minimum rent at $50 for households where all
members are 65 or older or have a disability, including in the
supportive housing programs for the elderly and people with
disabilities, which now have no minimum rent.)
The $152 minimum rent proposal would affect only the poorest people
receiving federal rental assistance, raising rents on some 1.7 million
people, including 970,000 children. The number of children in severe
poverty has grown substantially since the mid-90s, in part because the
safety net's erosion for families with children has left many such
families with little or no income when they're jobless. Many of the
other affected adults have been homeless or may have physical or
mental health conditions, or limited education, that make it difficult
to find or sustain employment.
The typical affected household is a mother with two children with an
annual income of $2,400 -- just $200 per month. After paying rent
under this proposal, the family would have only $48 for necessities
like clothing, personal care items, diapers, or school supplies, as
well as food or medical needs that aren't met by other assistance.
2018 0504rent2
While affected families may be eligible for hardship exemptions from
having to pay the higher minimum rent, very few assisted families
receive such exemptions in practice. Households have to request an
exemption, but eligible households may not know that exemptions are
available or how to apply if the housing agency doesn't adequately publicize
the policy.
There's
little reason to expect that to change under a higher minimum rent
policy, as HUD has not complied with a 2016 congressional directive to
certify that existing protections are being enforced.
A $152 mandatory minimum rent would put the lowest-income families and
individuals at risk of eviction and even homelessness, which is
particularly harmful to children. Rental assistance programs are
designed to help low-income families rent decent housing at an
affordable cost. This proposal does the exact opposite by raising the
rent on the most vulnerable HUD-assisted households.
Support from readers keeps Truthout 100 percent independent. If you
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This piece was reprinted by Truthout with permission or license. It
may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from
the source.
Alicia Mazzara
Alicia Mazzara is a Research Analyst in the Housing Division. She
works on issues related to federal low-income housing policy.
Prior to joining the Center in 2015, Mazzara was a Policy Advisor in
Third Way's Economic Program where her research centered on income
inequality, labor market dynamics, and workforce development. She has
also spent time working in the federal government and as a Research
Associate at the Pew Charitable Trusts.
Mazzara has a Bachelor's Degree in political science and international
relations from Carleton College and a Master of Public Policy from
George Washington University.
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