For thousands of New Jerseyans with mental illness and other disabilities, housing choice vouchers are a lifeline that helps them live in safe, independent homes and avoid homelessness. Housing vouchers provide rental assistance for affordable permanent housing, a steppingstone that makes it possible for people to rebuild their lives and work toward recovery.
Many of us take housing for granted, but many people with disabilities do not have enough income to cover the cost of rent and basic necessities for living, putting them at risk of ill health, living in poverty and becoming homeless. Homelessness makes daily survival a challenge, especially for people who also manage health and mental health issues.
Collaborative Support Programs of New Jersey (CSPNJ) provides supportive housing to over 140 persons in Monmouth County with housing vouchers and support services. These individuals are able to rebuild their lives and maintain independent living as neighbors and community residents. Unfortunately, there are many more individuals in Monmouth County who need permanent housing rental assistance who otherwise are homeless or living in substandard and unstable housing and who are struggling to maintain stable lives. Federal spending cuts to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development budget mean that fewer and fewer people are able to move into their own rental homes with the help of rental vouchers. Congressman Frank Pallone Jr. said that 67,000 vouchers nationally have been lost. That includes 1,900 vouchers in New Jersey alone. Seniors, people with disabilities and families with children often wait years for assistance.
We believe it is critical for Congress to fully fund housing choice vouchers and reverse losses to the federal housing vouchers programs. Congressman Pallone has an important voice in Washington, D.C. CSPNJ appreciates his support of voucher funding, and we hope that he and other New Jersey congressional representatives will continue to be a champion for this critical need in the coming year.
Jody Silver
Executive Director
Collaborative Support Programs of
New Jersey
Freehold