The bipartisan “Family Stability and Opportunity Vouchers Act” (S.1257, H.R.3776) would provide an additional 250,000 Housing Choice Vouchers for families with young children to increase those families’ housing stability and offer them greater choice deciding where to live. The bill could nearly eliminate homelessness among families with young children, as well as substantially reduce the number of children growing up in areas of concentrated poverty.
Research shows that low-income students perform better academically and close achievement gaps faster when housing assistance enables them to live stably in well-resourced neighborhoods with lower-poverty schools. Research also shows that when children in poor families grow up in neighborhoods with quality schools, low poverty, and low crime, they are significantly more likely to attend college and more likely to earn dramatically more as adults over the course of their lifetimes. This helps break cycles of generational poverty and produces a positive taxpayer return.
Advocates can take action by sending a pre-formatted letter to their Congress members urging them to support the bipartisan bill. To send a letter, go to the Opportunity Starts at Home Take Action webpage and fill out the form.
Information about Opportunity Starts at Home is at: https://www.opportunityhome.org