Political Quotes

“I thank Mr. Frank for offering this amendment to prevent unnecessary rent increases in affordable housing and I urge my colleagues to support it. We are in a housing crisis. The economic expansion of the past few years has been accompanied by skyrocketing home prices and rents. There is a severe shortage of affordable housing, and in many areas, any type of housing. In my home state of California, about half of renter households pay more than the recommended 30 percent of their income toward shelter. However, 91 percent of low income renter households, with annual incomes less than $15,000, spend more than 30 percent of their income toward rent. These low income households outnumber low cost rental units by a ratio of more than 2-to-1, both statewide and in Los Angeles County. About two-thirds (66 percent) of senior renter households pay more than 30 percent of their income toward shelter. 85 percent of low income senior renters pay more than 30 percent toward rent. And with the aging of our population, these percentages will soon translate into much higher numbers. Furthermore, the rising tide of the recent economy has failed to lift all boats. Household incomes of renters in my state have failed to keep pace with inflation, falling significantly between 1989 and 1999 in inflation adjusted terms. The inflation adjusted income of poor renters fell nearly 14 percent, and the median income for renters with children fell 11 percent.”