Washington - U.S. Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Mike Johanns (R-NE) - both members of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee - today introduced legislation aimed at ensuring that low-income disabled Americans have access to affordable housing options. The Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act would bolster the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's program that increases the availability of affordable housing for persons with disabilities and helps provide them with rental assistance.

"It is often hard for those who are disabled to find affordable housing that allows them to live independently, and that is particularly true during these tough times," said Menendez, who is Chairman of the Banking Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development. "We are working to help ensure that disabled members of our communities can keep a roof over their heads and can get some relief for their personal finances. We can do this by helping to increase the availability and reduce the cost of their housing, and we look forward to working with our colleagues to get this done."

"I take very seriously our responsibility to ensure people with disabilities have the opportunity to contribute to our communities and this legislation is an important step," Johanns said. "In a time when many are facing difficult struggles, it is our duty to see that no one is overlooked. This legislation helps people with disabilities to find affordable paces to live, which is often key to their independence."

The legislation would improve and expand HUD's Section 811 program by:

  • Increasing the number of available housing vouchers for people with disabilities and ensuring that vouchers continue to be used to help people with disabilities.
  • Encouraging the integration of mixed-used developments into the program and allowing funds from Low Income Housing Tax Credits and the HOME program to be used.
  • Extending the length of rental assistance contract terms from 20 years to 30 years for projects using Low Income Housing Tax Credits.

The bill has been endorsed by:

Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD), American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, American Network of Community Options and Resources, Association of University Centers on Disabilities, Autism Society of America, Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, Burton Blatt Institute, Easter Seals, Lutheran Services in America, Mental Health America, National Alliance on Mental Illness, National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities, National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors, National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare, National Disability Rights Network, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, National Spinal Cord Injury Association, The Arc of the United States, United Cerebral Palsy, United Jewish Communities, and United Spinal Association.

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