I-Team: Congress Considers Evicting High-Earning Families From Public Housing
BOSTON (CBS) -- Congressional leaders are discussing legislation that would address the issue of high-earning families continuing to live in taxpayer-subsidized housing.
The controversy was highlighted in an October I-Team report, which revealed some eye-popping salaries around the Boston area.
At one complex in Roxbury, a family of four reported a $228,000 income. At another public housing development in the Mission Hill neighborhood, five different families brought in six-figure salaries.
There were similar examples around the Commonwealth, including a three-person household in New Bedford with $212,845 of income, well above the income eligibility threshold of $42,950. The family only paid a monthly rent of $525.
"Egregious" examples like that were cited in a scathing report by the Inspector General of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The report estimated more than 25,000 families nationwide are "overincome" and living in public housing, about two percent of the overall population.
The families all met income guidelines when they applied for the program. The issue: Since obtaining jobs and earning higher salaries, nobody from the housing authorities has told them to pack up and move into the private market.
Local housing authority leaders told the I-Team the tenants pay higher rents at a time when federal funding is tight. High-earning families also add economic diversity to the public housing developments and serve as good role models, they argue.
"At some point, a good role model would make room for somebody else who needs the housing," said Rep. Michael Capuano (D-7th District). "I think the concept of public housing is a good thing, but I also think it should be for people in need."
The Massachusetts Congressman is a co-sponsor of a bipartisan housing bill that would add several reforms to HUD, including the issue of "overincome" tenants.
Instead of capping income at a certain dollar amount, an early draft of the legislation would add flexibility for different cities with varied housing costs. For instance, if a family earns 120 percent of the area's median income for a consistent amount of time, it would be given a six-month notice to move into the private market.
If the family did not want to move, it would have to pay the fair market value rent, and also cover any taxpayer subsidy provided to the public housing unit.
Capuano said the trick will be coming up with a formula that works across the country.
"You can live like a king on a $70,000 salary in Mississippi. You can't do that here in Boston," he said. "But that doesn't mean you should be able to milk the system."
In Boston, where the waiting list for public housing is approximately 38,000 applicants, housing authority leaders had formed a committee to look at writing a new policy. However, Boston Public Housing Authority spokeswoman Lydia Agro said they will now wait to see what lawmakers decide.
Jereon Brown, a spokesman for HUD, told the I-Team the federal agency has yet to weigh in on any of the proposed legislation. But Brown said HUD "wholeheartedly agrees" with the principle that "overincome" families should be transitioned out of public housing to give an opportunity to someone on the waiting lists.
"Our role is to provide housing for families in need, not those who choose to reside in affordable housing," Brown said.
Ryan Kath can be reached at rkath@cbs.com. You can follow him on Twitter @RyanKath or connect on Facebook.
