Take Action to End the Government Shutdown.

The government has been shutdown for over a month. It is the the longest ever and continues with no end in sight. Low-income people are already being negatively impacted. The longer the shutdown continues, the greater its harm will be, and the lowest-income people – seniors, people with disabilities, and families with children – will suffer the most

The government shutdown is thwarting critical investments in local communities and in affordable and accessible housing for low-income families, threatening to destabilize over four million households that depend on HUD’s rental assistance programs and creating widespread uncertainty for affordable housing investors. Already, They Shut down has impacted 77 HUD Project-based rental assistance and 1,997 assisted Units in Ohio.

Locally, the Shutdown has impacted a series of homeless services. Including the West side Catholic Center, Front Steps, Permanent Supporting housing for Young Adults. The first quarter total impact has been $2,079,644.

If the shutdown is not resolved by the end of February, Public Housing Authorities will not be able to make timely payments to landlords expecting rent subsidies on March 1. This could have dire consequences for voucher holders.

Some seniors across the country are worried that they are going to lose or be responsible for paying their government subsidies because of the shutdown. In two states so far, tenants have received letters from their landlords stating that eviction proceedings will begin if the tenant doesn’t pay all of the rent, their portion and the government’s subsidy, normally paid by HUD, by a given date.

Read more about these stories by clicking here

Funding for federal public benefits, including funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), will be impacted for an undetermined amount of time. The plan from the State of Ohio is that most of all current SNAP customers will receive their February benefits by January 16. The remaining SNAP recipients will receive benefits at the time of certification. It is anticipated that no other benefit issuance will be made until counties are informed by the State of ongoing developments with the federal shutdown. Any updates will be posted on cjfs.cuyahogacounty.us. 

You can read the full impacts of the Government shutdown on Affordable Housing Programs by clicking here.

Take Action Now!

A group of 34 U.S. senators and 138 representatives sent a letter on January 17 to President Donald Trump and HUD Secretary Ben Carson sharing the legislators’ concerns about the negative impacts on affordable housing programs resulting from the partial government shutdown.

Please contact your members of Congress and urge them to work to end the shutdown.