Kokua Line: Funding for state Section 8 not assured beyond February

Question: Please keep trying to find out what is going on with the state Section 8. Not all of us are in the city program.

Q: Regarding the shutdown, will the state cover a Section 8 shortfall the way the city will? This potentially affects thousands of tenants and landlords and needs more attention.

Answer: Unlike the city, the state hasn’t announced a shortfall-coverage plan. Hakim Ouansafi, executive director of the Hawaii Public Housing Authority, said its Section 8 program is fully funded through February. He expects to hear more from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development if the partial federal government shutdown doesn’t end by then. Here’s Ouansafi’s full statement Thursday:

“Nationwide, all states and counties administering the Section 8 program have been informed by HUD that they will be fully funded for January and February. If the government does not reopen by the end of February, we expect to receive further guidance from HUD regarding how to move forward for the subsequent months. This is especially challenging as, per HUD rules, no other funds qualify to be applied to the Housing Choice Voucher program. The Hawaii Public Housing Authority has built some reserves, however, HUD guidance is required on how and when these funds may be utilized. We are keeping our eyes on this matter and will continue to communicate with our tenants and landlords on how we plan to proceed as soon as more information becomes available. We continue to ask our landlords for their patience as we band together as a community to keep these families housed.”

The Housing Choice Voucher program, known as Section 8, helps low-income tenants, many of whom are seniors or disabled, pay monthly rent to private landlords. Typically, tenants contribute up to 30 percent of monthly income, and Section 8 covers the rest. The program is federally funded — through HUD, which has been shut down since Dec. 22 — but administered at the state and county level. On Oahu, HPHA (state) and the Department of Community Services (city/county) run separate Section 8 programs; tenancy doesn’t overlap. There are about 3,700 families in the city’s program and 2,347 (6,192 individuals) in the state’s, officials said.

As Kokua Line reported Thursday (808ne.ws/kline124), tenants and landlords in the city’s Section 8 program have been assured that the city will cover short-term funding shortfalls. A notice to that effect was posted Jan. 15 on the DCS website, reassuring both landlords and voucher holders that the city was being proactive to avoid unpaid rent and evictions.

Pamela Witty-Oakland, the department’s director, said in a telephone interview Wednesday that HUD funding for the city’s Section 8 program has been allocated through September but that monthly disbursements are not flowing because HUD is closed. The city usually gets a $4.2 million wire transfer from HUD every month, and it is that money the city is covering, through a loan from its general fund, she said. Knowing its approved allocation, the city is confident it will be reimbursed once the shutdown ends and HUD reopens, she said. The $4.2 million is used to subsidize housing for about 3,700 families.

Given Ouansafi’s assertion that HUD restricts alternative funding sources, we followed up with Witty- Oakland and HPHA spokeswoman Sarah Beamer on Thursday to reconcile the conflicting views. Beamer pointed us to 2013 guidance from HUD on the use of outside funding in the Housing Choice Voucher program (808ne.ws/hcvrules). We did not hear back from city officials by deadline.

Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.