Blaine Luetkemeyer: “I would just like to speak in support of the amendment. I believe the amendment reduces the burden on families for using…”

“I would just like to speak in support of the amendment. I believe the amendment reduces the burden on families for using solutions that already are likely to be in place with regards to interacting through other means testing programs. I think it improves the efficiency for public housing authorities and landlords, providing more accurate and timely eligibility information. It minimizes the risk of waste, fraud, and abuse of tax dollars and ensures limited resources are better targeted to families in need by requiring public housing agencies to access data used by other means tested programs or by assets. This amendment further strengthens the response to the 2015 inspector general's audit, which revealed individuals with substantial assets were receiving rental subsidies. This amendment builds on the progress made by the Committee on Financial Services to better target housing assistance to the needs of low-income individuals and families. The current system in determining eligibility for rental subsidies is burdensome to program recipients to report income that can vary as much as every week and time consuming for public housing agencies and landlords to collect and verify this information, unfair to taxpayers who expect tax dollars to be targeted to families most in need. I think you can see what I believe is an asset here from the standpoint it is going to streamline the system. It is going to save money.…”