Rick Lazio: “Mr. Chairman, once again we are talking about insuring that people who are working who have, possibly, disabilities…”

“Mr. Chairman, once again we are talking about insuring that people who are working who have, possibly, disabilities, people who are seniors, Americans who are seniors, also have the ability to get choice-based vouchers. The gentlewoman said this would potentially go to people making $40,000 a year. There is not a neighborhood, an area of the country, that would be able to get vouchers under this provision at $40,000 a year. The national median is about $38,000 a year in terms of median income. We are saying at least half of those people, half of the vouchers, must go to Americans at 60 percent of that, or $22,000. If the housing authority wanted to target all of its vouchers to the people at the bottom 10 percent, they have the ability to do that. What we are saying is that we are going to allow for safety provision in respect to the concern that many have that at least half of all the vouchers must go to the bottom 60 percent of the population. It is eminently fair.”