Demand a Stop to the Waste in our Housing Budget.

The only way we are going to create change is if we change our processes and procedures. We are a wealthy Nation who spends much money to stop homelessness. Our policies are helping to increase homeless people. There is an eviction epidemic that is causing thousands of families to be thrown out of their homes. Then we have to spend worker salaries and emergency dollars to try to help these Americans and we are losing the battle. The problem is a shift in resources that must be addressed with the correct policies and procedures to accomplish our intended outcomes to build healthy communities.
All Americans contribute to the National Housing Urban and Development [HUD] Federal Department though our taxes. The HUD the mission statement is to build integrated, healthy communities for American families. That is our reason to pay taxes to HUD. In 2013 we allocated $33.5 billion to fund all 15 of the separate HUD agencies and programs. We have come to a fork in the road because the programs operate independently and cause loopholes that allow for unintended results. The result of HUD efforts is a false distribution of resources that allow for landlords to rent to Section 8 voucher clients only in the areas landlords want resulting in economic segregated communities. For the housing program that means we spend in the higher resource areas because they qualify under certain HUD programs then we spend again in the lower resource areas because we need to and we fail to accomplish our goal to build healthy, integrated communities. In an integrated system we maximize resources and save money by offsetting and sharing costs. The only way we will accomplish our housing goals is to build an integrated, fully accountable, single HUD agency that will include all of HUD’s 15 agencies, to operate under one umbrella. No longer will a community qualify for HUD funding if they are in non-compliance of any other HUD sections. If a community wants infrastructure and new development HUD grant money for a nice place to live then they must be willing to live with All Americans. For example, a community can have the right overall total population mix and qualify for development and infrastructure grant monies yet not be in compliance for integrated communities and they still get funding. The result is we have families without homes and we spend our budget on upgrades for only a few. HUD claims their hands are tied. There is nothing they can do if an area is in compliance they must fund. The petition urges HUD to add a level of cohesiveness and accountability for the program in that by combining all HUD agencies under one agency or program, similar to what we did with the Department of Homeland Security to keep Americans safe, an area must be in compliance of all parts of the HUD program to get money. The program was created to work as a whole to be successful. The way the loopholes are used to fund parts of the program do not work to fix the American housing problem. Please if you agree it is time to stop homelessness, to stop the waste of our tax dollars, to make HUD accountable, productive, to build healthy, integrated communities. Read the petition and if you agree then sign and please pass it on. No one in America should be houseless and without food. These are basic items that anyone in a wealthy Nation should have. Let’s make the best use of our resources and stop the waste that is happening from agencies that feel they have no jurisdiction for anything outside their department.

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