Steve Chabot: “the section 8 program is a program I believe is in serious need of fundamental reforms, not more money. Two weeks ago…”

“the section 8 program is a program I believe is in serious need of fundamental reforms, not more money. Two weeks ago, the House debated H.R. 1851, the so-called Section 8 Voucher Reform Act. But rather than making the program more effective for the individuals who use it and more accountable to the taxpayers who fund it, the bill will create 100,000 more vouchers at a cost of $2.4 billion over the next 5 years. I offered several amendments to strengthen the bill and bring about some much-needed responsibility to the program, to add, for example, work requirements and time limits and to stop the creation of new vouchers. Unfortunately, those amendments were voted down. And now 2 weeks later, we find ourselves considering a bill that would reward this flawed program by increasing its funding by hundreds of millions of dollars. When we committed ourselves sometime ago to welfare reform, it was with the understanding that the program should no longer be a tax-funded handout but should instead offer people a way out of poverty, helping them obtain job and education skills they needed to become self-sufficient. Ending welfare cycle of dependencies have cut the welfare rolls in half, promoted individual responsibility, and saved billions of tax dollars in the process. Sadly, current housing programs closely resemble the failed welfare policies of the past.”