Atlanta Housing Changes Work Requirements to Help More Families

Atlanta Housing Board of Commissioners votes on new work requirement that preserves eligibility for affordable housing

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Nov 05, 2019, 13:07 ET

ATLANTA, Nov. 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Atlanta Housing Board of Commissioners last Wednesday approved a change in the work requirements for those receiving assistance by Atlanta Housing (AH) that could make more than 1,000 families eligible for housing support.

"We insist that our applicants and residents be employed and working toward housing independence," says Eugene Jones, Jr., the new president and CEO of Atlanta Housing. "But Atlanta has the highest work requirement in the nation. By lowering it, we can create critically needed housing affordability for more families in need."

Atlanta Housing (AH) requires able-bodied household members ages 18 to 61 to work 30 hours per week or be involved in a combination of work, training or education to be in compliance with the work requirement. Most public housing authorities (PHAs), including Charlotte, have a work requirement of 20 hours a week or less. Other PHAs, such as San Diego and San Antonio, do not impose a work requirement at all.

AH's higher standard eliminated 1,079 families who were denied housing assistance because they could not meet the work requirement. After Wednesday's decision, AH started reaching out to those families on Nov. 1 to re-determine their eligibility.

"After review, we found this particular work requirement to be onerous. For many employers, 30 hours per week is considered full time, at which point employers are expected, or in some cases required, to provide health and retirement benefits," says Dr. Christopher Edwards, chairman of the Atlanta Housing Board of Commissioners. "Our standard of employment was much higher and more stringent to attain for workers whose hours are often limited to less than that 30 hours per week, and it often forced them to work multiple jobs to stay compliant," Dr. Edwards continues. "By lowering the work requirement to 20 hours per week, we can make housing affordable for more families, and still insist that they work their way to independence so we can help others."

About Atlanta Housing
The Housing Authority of the City of Atlanta, Georgia (AH), is the largest housing authority in Georgia and one of the largest in the nation. AH provides and facilitates affordable housing resources for nearly 22,000 low-income households comprised of approximately 50,000 people.

These affordable housing resources include AH-owned residential communities, AH-sponsored mixed-income, mixed-finance residential communities, tenant-based vouchers, project based rental assistance, supportive housing arrangements and homeownership opportunities. AH's programs are funded and regulated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development ("HUD").

Visit Atlanta Housing at http://www.atlantahousing.org or follow on Twitter at @housingatlanta.

SOURCE Atlanta Housing