On the most recent (June 20) call for the National HoUSed Campaign, participants heard details from the latest edition of NLIHC’s annual report Out of Reach: The High Cost of Housing, learned about new time limits being imposed on food assistance recipients and the potential impact of those limits on people experiencing homelessness, received field updates from North Carolina and Nevada, and received the latest information on fiscal year (FY) 2024 appropriations.
NLIHC senior vice president for research, Andrew Aurand, shared findings from NLIHC’s recent report, Out of Reach: The High Cost of Housing, an annual publication that demonstrates the gap between wages and the cost of rental housing. The report calculates the “Housing Wage,” the hourly wage needed to afford a one- or two-bedroom rental home at the regional fair market rent (FMR) without spending more than 30% of household income on rent and utilities. In addition to a national Housing Wage, the report also provides the Housing Wage for every state and major metropolitan area. Out of Reach found that the 2023 national Housing Wage is $28.58 per hour needed to be able to afford a modest two-bedroom rental home, and $23.67 per hour needed to be able to afford a modest one-bedroom rental home. The Housing Wages are far higher than the federal or state minimum wages, and are higher than median wages for workers in some of the most common occupations. People of color, who are more likely to be renters and to work in low-wage jobs, are consequentially disproportionately impacted by the gap between low wages and high rents.
Gina Plata-Nino, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) deputy director at the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC), discussed the expansion of harsh time limits on SNAP benefits enacted by the debt ceiling legislation. The new policy extends arbitrary time limits to receive SNAP benefits for older, unemployed or underemployed adults, who may be struggling to find or maintain employment. People experiencing homelessness and other groups, including veterans and young people aging out of foster care, are exempt from the time limits; however, filing for an exemption presents a barrier that will likely result in many people experiencing homelessness being removed from SNAP despite otherwise qualifying.
Stephanie Watkins-Cruz, policy director of the North Carolina Housing Coalition (NCHC), shared her organization’s new resources and outreach materials, including a “Housing Matters” newsletter and podcast. She also shared NCHC’s County Profiles, which look at housing needs for each of North Carolina’s 100 counties. Nevada Housing Coalition (NHC) executive director Christine Hess and NHC board member Brooke Page discussed recent legislative victories in Nevada, including enacting legislation to create a Supportive Housing Development Fund.
NLIHC’s policy manager Kim Johnson shared the latest information on FY24 appropriations. House Republicans recently approved FY24 spending levels that would slash $131 billion in domestic spending – including cutting more than $22 billion from the Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (THUD) bill that funds vital HUD programs. Ms. Johnson urged advocates to contact their members of Congress as soon as possible to urge them to increase – not cut – resources for affordable housing and homelessness in FY24.
Resources discussed on the 6/20 call:
- Out of Reach 2023: The High Cost of Housing – Andrew Aurand, NLIHC
- Impact of Expanded SNAP Time Limits – Gina Plata-Nino, Food Research & Action Center (FRAC)
- FRAC Statement: Expansion of Harsh Time Limits on SNAP in Debt Ceiling Agreement Will Fuel Rates of Hunger and Poverty
- FRAC 2023 Farm Bill Priorities
- FRAC SNAP Talking Points on Time Limits
- FRAC Blog: Communication Is Key for SNAP
- Field Update – Stephanie Watkins-Cruz, North Carolina Housing Coalition
- NC Housing Coalition’s County Profiles
- Housing Matters 2 NC Podcast
- Sign up for the North Carolina Housing Coalition’s “Housing Matters” newsletter.
- Field Update – Christine Hess, Nevada Housing Coalition and Brooke Page, Corporation for Supportive Housing and Nevada Housing Coalition board member
- Policy Updates – Kim Johnson, NLIHC
- NLIHC 6/20 Memo article on threats to HUD programs in FY24 spending bill.
- Email your members of Congress and urge them to increase – not cut – resources for affordable housing and homelessness in FY24 and to support NLIHC’s top appropriations priorities
- Sign your organization on to the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding’s (CHCDF) annual budget letter.
National calls take place every other week. The next call will be on July 17 at 2:30 pm ET. Register for the call at: https://tinyurl.com/ru73qan