With Senior Housing Shortage Growing In The Rochester Area, Schumer Blasts Administration Cuts To Vital Housing Programs For Elderly

Press Release

With Senior Housing Shortage Growing In The Rochester Area, Schumer Blasts Administration Cuts To Vital Housing Programs For Elderly

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer blasted an Administration proposal to gut vital housing programs for low-income seniors and disabled persons in the Rochester area and across the country. Schumer said that the current budget slashes more than $275 million. Schumer today called on the Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to restore funding to housing programs for seniors which have provided Rochester seniors $6.2 million in assistance since 2004. These programs provide grants to non-profits and community organizations for the development of supportive housing and rental assistance for low-income seniors and those with disabilities.

"It is inexcusable to leave our nation's seniors without the housing programs that ensure that they can afford to have a roof over their head," said Schumer. "Particularly for low-income seniors and disabled persons, supportive housing and rental assistance programs are an essential component to affordable housing. I will continue to fight tooth and nail to restore funding to these vital programs so that our seniors are not left out in the cold."

The elderly population in the Rochester area has been rapidly growing from 5,700 people older than 85 in Monroe County in 1970 to over 13,600 in the last census. As life expectancy grows, so does the elderly population, contributing to the housing crunch faced by seniors in Rochester. According to the American Association of Home and Services for the Aging, there are 10 people on waiting lists for every occupied unit of senior housing supported by HUD.

This shortage is reflected in the Rochester area, particularly in the suburbs where 80% of Monroe County's 95,000 senior citizens reside. At many housing communities the waitlists are over 200 names long for a limited number of available units. The housing shortage is exacerbated by the high cost of living facing seniors, especially those whose rely solely on their social security pension. In Monroe County, 12 percent of people age 65 and older live on less than $10,000 a year and more than 40 percent of those 65 and older have less than $25,000 in annual income.

The Section 202 and 811 programs provide capital grants to non-profits and community organizations for the development of supportive housing and rental assistance for very low-income seniors and those with disabilities. Both programs provide supportive services coupled with housing to create a safe community and promote an independent life style. Many of those who currently live in Section 202 and 811 housing units are on fixed incomes and would not be able to bear the rising costs of health care, and housing on their own.

With an estimated 8.4 million seniors struggling to survive on an annual income of less than $10,000, both of these programs are vital to the quality of living for our nation's seniors. The Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly program is the only HUD program that provides housing and supportive services exclusively for the low-income elderly. The Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities program produces affordable and accessible housing exclusively for low-income disabled individuals.

The current Administration budget slashes funding for the Section 811 program by 50 percent and for the Section 202 program by about 22 percent. These cuts would significantly limit the number of new units that can be created and exacerbate difficulties for elderly and disabled Americans seeking affordable housing as development costs continue to rise. Specifically, in the FY08 budget proposal, the President recommended a cut to the Section 202 program by $160 million and the Section 811 program by $115 million under the FY07 levels.

If these cuts were enacted, only 2,700 new units of section 202 housing and only about 1,100 new vouchers in the Section 811 program would be created nationally. This stands in stark contrast to the findings of the congressionally mandated Commission on Affordable Housing and Health Facility Needs for Seniors in the 21st Century, which estimated that approximately 730,000 additional senior housing units will be needed by 2020 to address the housing needs of low-income seniors.

Schumer will call on Chairwoman Sen. Patty Murray and Ranking Member Sen. Christopher Bond to restore funding for these important programs. Schumer and his colleagues will declare that, "Congress should act now to plan appropriately for the increased demand that will exist for housing in the coming years and ensure that seniors and those with disabilities can find safe, affordable housing, at a cost they can afford on fixed incomes."

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