Washington, DC – House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA-23) recently introduced legislation that reforms and expands Moving to Work – a successful public housing program that gives local communities greater control in serving our neighbors.
H.R. 5137, the Moving to Work Reform and Expansion Act, extends a tried and tested pilot program known as Moving to Work, which gives local communities more power in determining how federal resources are prioritized to help those who have fallen on tough times return to self-sufficiency. Introduced on April 29, the bill has the support of the Public Housing Authorities Directors Association, the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities, the California Association of Housing Authorities and local community outreach nonprofits and housing officials.
Tomorrow, Thursday, May 12, 2016, the House Financial Services Committee will hold a legislative hearing entitled, “The Future of Housing in America: A Comparison of the United Kingdom and United States Models for Affordable Housing.”
Ahead of the hearing, Congressman McCarthy released the following statement:
“In our efforts to lift those up from homelessness and deprivation, we should rely on and trust our local communities, not centralized agencies in Washington. I believe that every community should be empowered with the flexibility to implement programs that work best for them and their citizens.
“This bill could help continue to reform the way public housing is administered in America by protecting Moving to Work from new waves of regulation imposed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. It allows local housing agencies to apply to participate in a better Moving to Work program while improving the original program’s reporting and accountability processes.”
“Solutions to complex issues facing our country require harnessing the experiences of local housing experts, who know firsthand how to better address the unique needs of their local communities. I look forward to hearing how housing officials across the country are getting our neighbors back on their feet.”