The Administration says the proposed funding cuts can be carried out without harming low-income families. Is that possible?
No. The Administration has claimed its proposal would give housing agencies sufficient flexibility to enable them to absorb the entire $1.6 billion funding reduction in fiscal year 2005 simply by cutting administrative costs or improving efficiency. This would not be possible. The proposed cut in voucher funding exceeds the entire amount of administrative funding agencies now receive. Housing agencies might be able to use the added flexibility to reduce some costs, for example by reducing the frequency of administrative procedures like inspection of apartments. But this would be unlikely to save more than a small fraction of the $1.6 billion cut. In a paper issued on May 18, 2004, HUD estimated that the simplification of administrative requirements it proposed would save only $130 million annually. And in any event, agencies could be given more administrative flexibility without radically changing the voucher program s structure. The Administration also claims that agencies could achie
