Section 8
SECTION 8 WAITING LIST is currently CLOSED
Section 8 Vouchers are currently "suspended" as of May 5, 2009.
Current voucher holders not under lease and HAP contract will have to wait until the suspension is lifted in order to submit Request for Tenancy Approval forms.
Vouchers will remain suspended until sufficient funding is available for new families.
Suspended vouchers will not lose any of the suspended days. All vouchers will be allowed the usual time frame for usage. Suspended days will be added to the vouchers upon reinstatement up to the amount of days that were lost from the original voucher up to its expiration.
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Current requests for rent increases will be denied due to current funding constraints.
The Housing Choice Voucher Program for Section 8 Rental Assistance – commonly referred to as “Section 8” – is a federal housing program, established by Congress in 1974, that provides rental assistance to low-income families and individuals, which allows them to rent units in the private rental market.
Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program is not an emergency housing program. It is considered a permanent housing program, as there is no deadline for termination of services and no set amount of total assistance that can be provided to a family.
The tenant is responsible for paying the security deposit and their portion of the monthly rent (approximately 30% of the adjusted household income). The balance of the monthly rent is paid directly to the landlord by the Columbia Housing Authority (CHA).
CHA’s Section 8 program provides rental subsidies to over 1,100 low-income persons that allow them to rent units from more than 700 private landlords located throughout Boone County.
“High Performer”
CHA was rated a “High Performer” in Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD’s) Section Eight Management Assessment Program (SEMAP) for the most recent fiscal year. SEMAP measures the performance of public housing authorities that administer the Section 8 Rental Assistance Program in 14 key areas. SEMAP helps HUD field offices target additional monitoring and assistance to public housing authority programs that need the most improvement. The 14 indicators of performance show whether public housing authorities help eligible families to afford decent rental units at a reasonable subsidy cost as intended by federal housing legislation.
To be designated a “High Performer,” a public housing authority must have a composite SEMAP score of at least 90%. CHA’s composite score was 100%.
For more information, contact Roberta Gill at (573) 443-2556, ext. 1412 or rgill@columbiaha.com.
