News and Updates
MUPHT Letter to Chairman Kevin Honan, House Chair of Joint Committee on Housing
March 9, 2011
Chairman Kevin G. Honan
House Chair of Joint Committee on Housing
Dear Chairman Honan,
On behalf of families, seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities across the Commonwealth who live in and need public housing, the Mass. Union has appreciated your support for public housing. During your tenure as Chair of the Joint Committee on Housing, you have been a voice for not only preserving public housing in ways that protect it for the poorest and the most vulnerable, but you have worked to advance legislation that seeks to expand the number of public housing apartments.
The Governor’s FY 2012 Budget Proposal currently proposes $62.5 million for the Public Housing Operating Subsidy account (Line Item 7004-9005). This is the same amount that was funded last year and the year before. As the House Ways & Means Committee reviews the Governor’s proposed budget, we are asking our Representatives and Senators to increase the Public Housing Operating Subsidy to $71 million so that Massachusetts can protect housing that is desperately needed.
We know this is difficult to request during an economically difficult time. But level funding will mean that housing authorities will not have enough money to operate. It is half of the $115 million that the state has documented Massachusetts needs to adequately maintain public housing.Level funding means also that more units will stay vacant because there is not enough money to fix them up. As of Sept. 2010, there were more than 1,600 apartments statewide that had been vacant for more than 60 days. The Department of Housing and Community Development informed Mass. Union that as of September 30, 2010 that 177 of the 242 housing authorities in Massachusetts had reported that 1,606 units had been vacant for more than 60 days (616 apartments in Chapter 200 family public housing, 864 apartments in Chapter 667 public housing for seniors and people with disabilities, and 126 apartments in Chapter 705 scattered site family public housing).
We cannot afford to loose these units. Or put, positively, imagine if we could bring these 1,600 units back on-line. That would provide 1,600 households with a roof over their heads. We hope that you will join us in pressing for the operating subsidy to be increased and thank you for all of your work to protect public housing.
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