Joel Hefley: “French economist Jean-Baptiste Say is famous as the author of Say's Law, sometimes summarized as ``Supply creates its…”

“French economist Jean-Baptiste Say is famous as the author of Say's Law, sometimes summarized as ``Supply creates its own demand.'' In economic circles, this law is still the subject of debate. Here in Washington, however, the Department of Housing and Urban Development has been proving Say's Law for the past 30 years. We keep increasing spending on public housing, and the problem just gets worse. Contrary to popular belief, housing assistance was not cut during the Reagan years. Discretionary Federal assisted housing outlays have grown from $165 million in 1962 to $5.5 billion in 1980 and $23.7 billion in 1994, resulting in 55 percent more families being assisted today than in 1980. Has this dramatic growth solved the problem? No. Today, after HUD's budget has grown by over 400 percent in 15 years, only 30 percent of the families eligible to receive housing assistance are doing so. And what kind of housing are they receiving? The 1992 report on severely distressed public housing found many public housing residents afraid to leave their own homes due to prevalent crime while others were living in decaying conditions that threatened their safety and health.”