Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services, released this statement following news that the 70,000 Emergency Housing Vouchers she secured in the American Rescue Plan have been distributed:

“I am pleased to hear that many families in need or at risk of homelessness or fleeing domestic violence have been able to access the support they so desperately need. This is proof that my long fight to provide assistance to families struggling with their housing costs has certainly helped some. Because of the $5 billion I was able to secure in the American Rescue Plan for emergency housing vouchers, 26,000 households have used these vouchers to secure an apartment and another 35,000 families are apartment searching or finalizing their lease. However, let’s not forget that more than half a million people have been left behind and are still in desperate need of help. We cannot and will not accept that.

“As Chairwoman of the Financial Services Committee, I will continue to fight for more housing vouchers to serve more people and do any and everything possible to ensure that everyone has a safe and secure environment – one where they do not have to choose between a roof over their head and a meal.”

Background:

On March 26, 2022, Chairwoman Waters helped hundreds of Angelenos expecting housing vouchers.

On March 14, 2022, Chairwoman Waters addressed the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) for their event, NLIHC’s Virtual Housing Policy Forum 2022: Achieving Housing Justice.

On June 9, 2021, Chairwoman Waters convened a full Committee virtual hearing entitled, “Universal Vouchers: Ending Homelessness and Expanding Economic Opportunity in America.”

On April 14, 2021, Chairwoman Waters convened a virtual full Committee hearing entitled, “Build Back Better: Investing in Equitable and Affordable Housing Infrastructure.”

On April 26, 2021, Chairwoman Waters applauded HUD’s withdrawal of Trump administration rule that weakened fair housing protections for LGBTQ+ community.

On March 10, 2021, Chairwoman Waters applauded Marcia Fudge’s confirmation as HUD Secretary.

On March 10, 2021, Chairwoman Waters convened a full Committee virtual hearing entitled, “Justice for All: Achieving Racial Equity Through Fair Access to Housing and Financial Services.”

On January 27, 2021, Chairwoman Waters applauded President Biden’s Memorandum on Redressing Our Nation’s and the Federal Government’s History of Discriminatory Housing Practices and Policies.

On December 4, 2020, Chairwoman Waters provided recommendations to then President-Elect Biden on Trump actions to reverse.

In April of 2019, the Committee convened a hearing entitled, “Housing in America: Assessing the Infrastructure Needs of America’s Housing Stock,” where Chairwoman Waters called for infrastructure investments to include robust funding for housing.

In November of 2019, Chairwoman Waters introduced her legislation, the Housing Is Infrastructure Act (H.R. 5187).

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