HUD’s Proposal to End Assistance to Mixed Status Families

INSIGHTi

HUD’s Proposal to End Assistance to Mixed

Status Families

Maggie McCarty

Specialist in Housing Policy

Jameson A. Carter

Research Assistant

Updated July 29, 2019

On May 10, 2019, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released a proposed rule

to end eligibility for “mixed status” families in its major rental assistance programs (public housing,

Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, Section 8 project-based rental assistance). “Mixed status” families

comprise both citizens (or eligible noncitizens) and ineligible noncitizens. As reported in the press and

reflected in analysis by both CRS and HUD, the rule would likely result in the displacement from HUDassisted housing of over 25,000 families, including 55,000 children. Additionally, the rule would establish

new documentation requirements for citizens. The proposed rule received over 30,000 comments. Some

commentators raised concerns about administrative burdens and impacts on families, as well as the

possibility of legal challenges under the Fair Housing Act and the Administrative Procedures Act.

Treatment of Mixed Status Families

Current law—Section 214 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980, as amended—

prohibits the provision of certain housing assistance benefits to ineligible noncitizens (generally, persons

in the country illegally or persons legally present but in a temporary status, such as tourists or students).

The law does not directly address how the prohibition should be applied in the case of mixed status

families. It took HUD more than a decade to finalize its interpretation and implementation of this law, in

part due to a series of statutory changes related to the categories of eligible and ineligible noncitizens, as

well as congressional directives suspending HUD’s implementation of various proposed rules. The final

regulations implementing Section 214 address the issue of mixed status families by requiring the

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proration—or proportional reduction—of assistance provided to these families. Other social programs that

provide benefits to families and households—Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and the

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)—also pay reduced benefits to mixed status families.

Under HUD’s 2019 proposed rule, mixed status families would be ineligible for assistance. The only

exception would be for certain households that were receiving assistance on the date the existing

regulations took effect (June 19, 1995). All other mixed status households currently being served would

either have to remove ineligible household members to continue to receive assistance (an unavailable

option for families with eligible children but no eligible adults) or to move to unassisted housing, either

voluntarily or by formal eviction. Program administrators could continue assistance for mixed status

families for six to 18 months while families seek new housing. No future mixed status families would be

eligible for assistance. HUD contends that this policy change is consistent with various executive orders

promulgated by President Trump.

Data

According to 2017 HUD data (as published in the economic analysis accompanying the rule and analyzed

by CRS) the affected programs served more than 25,000 mixed status families consisting of more than

108,000 people. More than three-quarters of these households were families with children, primarily

households containing eligible children and ineligible adult members. This includes roughly 55,000

children who are U.S. citizens or have eligible immigration status.

Mixed status families make up a relatively small share of the overall assistance caseload nationally,

accounting for approximately 0.5% of all assisted households. However, mixed status families make up a

more significant caseload share for some Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) administering public

housing and/or Housing Choice Vouchers. Based on CRS analysis of HUD data, mixed status families

account for 10% or more of the caseload for approximately 40 PHAs, in some cases accounting for more

than one-third of all families served by a PHA. Geographically, the largest numbers of mixed status

families are in California, Texas, and New York.

HUD’s economic analysis found that the proposed rule would increase subsidy costs by roughly $200

million annually, as mixed status families receiving a reduced benefit would be replaced by families

receiving full benefits. However, in a limited funding environment, this would likely result in fewer

families being served overall or a decrease in the quality of the housing provided. Additionally, turnover

in housing programs can be costly for program administrators. These costs can include the court-related

expenses related to formal evictions, cleaning and repairs to prepare a unit for new occupants, and/or the

costs of processing new applicants for assistance. HUD notes that these costs may be sizeable. HUD

estimated that displaced mixed status families would bear moving costs of approximately $500 each and

further noted that some families may face homelessness as a result of the rule change. The agency did not

quantify that impact but noted that researchers estimate that the costs of homelessness borne by society

can exceed $20,000 per homeless person annually.

Documentation Requirements for Citizens

Under current HUD regulations, each member of a family receiving housing assistance must provide (1) a

declaration of citizenship, signed under penalty of perjury; (2) a declaration of eligible immigration status,

signed under penalty of perjury, along with appropriate verification documentation; or (3) an election not

to contend to have eligible immigration status, thus making the family a mixed status family. The

proposed rule would make changes to the first option by creating a federal requirement for documentation

of citizenship. Currently, program administrators may, but are not required to, request citizenship

documentation of applicants. Under the proposed rule, all current and future citizen beneficiaries will

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have to provide proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate, passport, or other documentation deemed

acceptable by HUD, as established in future guidance. The vast majority of the roughly 9.6 million people

receiving assistance under the Section 214-covered programs are citizens who would be subject to this

requirement.

A 2007 Government Accountability Office report assessed the implications of citizenship documentation

requirements added to the Medicaid program and found that such requirements appeared to increase

administrative costs of the program and served as a barrier to program enrollment or result in loss of

benefits for otherwise eligible citizens. The potential administrative or other program costs of the new

documentation requirement are not contemplated in HUD’s economic analysis of the proposed rule.

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