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Kokua Line June Watanabe |
Section 8 housing aid
has waiting listQuestion: What is Section 8 housing? I have been told it is a program by the state in which they give money to supplement rent for deserving people. One recipient said she gets rent money for a big two-room apartment, yet I see homeless families living on the street and women in shelters with their children. Who decides who gets this money? What follow-up is there, or are people able to get the money forever?
Answer: Section 8 is a federal program -- part of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
HUD provides money to the states, which, in turn, issue housing vouchers to help subsidize rents for the low-income, elderly and disabled.
Section 8 is supposed to help people find decent, safe housing in the private marketplace.
Landlords must agree to rent limits to participate in the program, and their rentals must meet health and safety standards set by the state. The housing subsidy is then paid directly to the landlord, while the voucher holder is required to pay the difference between the actual rent and the subsidy.
"It's mainly for families who are working and struggling to make ends meet but who need some assistance ... to find housing that is safe, sanitary and decent," said Derick Dahilig, spokesman for the state Department of Human Services. They are free to find their own housing.
The Housing and Community Development Corp. of Hawaii, which administers public housing programs under the Department of Human Resources, issues the vouchers on behalf of qualified applicants.
HUD gives the state up to $4.1 million a year to cover a maximum 3,058 units for Section 8 housing, said Pamela Dodson, executive assistant to the director of the state housing agency.
However, the agency has a waiting list of 1,350 applicants, and "we're not accepting new applications," Dahilig said. That's an indication of how tight the rental market is.
Between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2003, the state housing agency issued 162 vouchers, 83 of them for first-time participants in the program, Dahilig said. All the first-time participants were able to find housing.
However, "There are people out there with Section 8 vouchers who can't find any rental," Dahilig said.
Section 8 recipients are required to restate their assets and income every year.
"We also do an inspection of their home once a year as well, to make sure the conditions are safe and they are where they are," Dahilig said. "We also do a third-party verification, such as with their employer, to make sure they are employed and making what they're making. This is also done annually."
According to HUD, eligibility is based on the total annual gross income and family size and is limited to U.S. citizens and specified noncitizens who have eligible immigration status. In general, a family's income may not exceed 50 percent of the median income for the area in which it chooses to live.
Each state has the discretion to come up with its own "local preferences" in selecting applicants from its waiting list, according to HUD.
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