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Comments on Olsen and Ludwig’s“Housing and urban development policies in

the War on Poverty”

Raphael BosticUniversity of Southern California

Prepared for the National Poverty Center’sWar on Poverty Project Conference

June 12, 2012

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Points of Departure

• Public housing has a mixed record• Housing assistance is a lottery• There is great diversity in the housing

demand-supply mismatch across metros• Housing policy is often not HUD policy• Neighborhood revitalization has never been

significantly funded• The person versus neighborhood debate rages

on

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Summary - Implications

• War on Poverty: Failure or success?– Main narrative suggests failure• Poverty remains a problem• Neighborhoods of distress still exist in significant

numbers

– But there were key successes• Significant increase in number of people receiving

assistance• Regarding policy, War on Policy provided

– First forays into tenant-based assistance, which has become the standard

– First steps into private sector as the vehicle for assistance

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Summary - Implications

• Three main policy implications of the War on Poverty– Voucher out public housing located in highest

poverty and most segregated neighborhoods– Stop subsidizing affordable housing construction

and use vouchers instead– Make housing assistance an entitlement program

for the poorest households

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Voucher-Out Public Housing

• What is the right metric for success?– Undoubtedly, if it is cost-effectiveness, this

conclusion is correct– Also likely correct if one considers health and safety– But what if it is economic sufficiency? stability?

social cohesion? Access to opportunity?• Operationally, how would this occur?– PH is segregated now, and often in neighborhoods

of concentrated poverty– What is the cost comparison?

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Stop Subsidizing Construction

• This won’t work for all markets– Supply-constrained markets currently exist– Today there are extra pressures on rental markets

generally arising from the housing crisis• What is the quality implication of this?– LIHTC units often upgrade the quality of housing in

local markets– Is there value in moving beyond the current minimum

standard?– That said, the allocation of construction dollars

warrants a major overhaul to make it more need-based

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Make It an Entitlement for the Poorest

• Sure• But…– Is the cost prohibitive?– Where is the political will for this?• Example of homelessness

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Was War on Poverty a Success or Failure?

• Basic observation: We did not spend enough to fully deal with the problem– We still are not– This has resulted in the partnership strategy

becoming dominant• Housing choice voucher program• Current policy initiatives

– Choice Neighborhoods, Rental Assistance Demonstration

• What is the right scope of activity coverage?– Homeownership? Work training? Health care?