Testimony
presented by: John
Thomas, Deputy Director, The Arc of Massachusetts
Date: January 24, 2006
Subject: Housing - C40B
I am John
Thomas, Deputy Director of The Arc of Massachusetts.
The Arc is the largest disability advocacy organization in the country, and
here locally in Massachusetts. I appreciate the ability to speak before
the Committee today in support of C40B as an advocate for the disability
community.Being
part of the community and living as independently as possible are among the
most important values and goals shared by people with disabilities, their
families, and advocates. A home of one’s
own – either rented or owned - is the cornerstone of independence for people
with disabilities. However, across the
Commonwealth, people with intellectual disabilities face a crisis in the
availability of decent, safe, affordable, and accessible housing. Today many still live in large congregate
facilities or other inappropriate places like state schools.
The
Massachusetts Department of Mental Retardation [DMR], a $1.1 billion agency, serves approximately
33,000 people, yet we know for a fact that statistically, there are between
50,000 and 60,000 people with disabilities that could be found eligible for services
by the state. Where are these people
living? Many continue to reside with
aging parents. We know for a fact that
more people are entering the adult human service system than ever before, as
younger families are raising children with disabilities with the expectation
that they will one day move into the community. This is occurring at a critical time as the state struggles to address
the affordable housing needs of the general population, let alone the needs of
people with intellectual and other disabilities.
Among the
key findings from the most recent report* from the Technical Assistance
Collaborative and the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Housing Task
Force are several striking facts that I hope this committee considers when
deciding whether to reduce, rather than increase, the number of tools available
in the toolbox to address an affordable housing crisis that disproportionately
affects people with disabilities:
- With incomes equal to only 14.1%
of the median one-person household income, people with disabilities receiving Supplementary Security Income
are among the lowest-income citizens in Massachusetts.
- Federal housing affordability guidelines state
that low-income households should pay no more than 30 percent of monthly
income towards housing costs. This long-standing policy recognizes that
money must be left over after the rent is paid to cover other basic needs,
such as food, clothing, transportation – however, the average rent for a
modest one-bedroom unit continued to be higher than the entire monthly
income of a person with a disability receiving SSI payments.In Boston, this rent represents 158.8%
of a person’s SSI payment.
- As the average one-bedroom rent in Massachusetts
continues to climb well above the amount of income available to the
individual, who makes up the difference? Again, the answer is families, for the most part - and, secondly, we
the taxpayers foot the remainder of the bill, along with other revenues
that flow into state line items that provide reimbursement to those
individuals lucky enough to receive a portion of the DMR residential line
item. For others who do not meet
eligibility guidelines set forth by DMR or DMH, there are few safety
nets. People with autism and other
related disabilities, such as Asperger’s Syndrome, are currently left to
the mercy of generic affordable housing subsidies and supports.
It is
against this backdrop that The Arc of Massachusetts, along with many other
disability advocacy organizations, urge the committee to consider very strongly
the potential impact that removing C40B incentives would have on our
constituents.
We know that C40B encourages
development of affordable housing, but what about affordable accessible housing for people with
disabilities?
With the
new statutory and regulatory language allowing municipalities to count DMR and
DMH units towards a community’s affordable housing stock, 40B now provides an
even greater incentive for cities and towns to welcome the development of
housing that meets the needs of our population. According to figures on file with DMR and DHCD, there are currently 8,013
affordable housing units that Massachusetts
towns and cities are able to claim as part of their affordable housing
stock. The ability for individuals to
continue living in their own communities will become increasingly difficult if
incentives are removed by statutory changes to C40B. Yet the Americans with
Disabilities Act, the Supreme Court’s recent Olmstead decision, and Massachusetts’
own Olmstead Plan provide powerful obligations for the state to specifically
assist those with disabilities who wish to live in their communities.
Municipalities have voiced concern
that increased affordable housing creates a fiscal hardship for local budgets –
how does the DMR population affect local budgets?
There is
concern that tax revenue generated
by affordable housing cannot keep pace with the demands that lower-income
families place upon schools. This argument has no bearing on the DMR population
since these individuals are adults who have aged out of the education system
and place no burden on local schools. In addition, DMR consumers utilize
relatively few municipal services due to accessibility issues – something we as
advocates would like to change, but for purposes of this argument, is yet
another reason why cities and towns should welcome the development of C40B-generated
DMR housing.
The Arc of Massachusetts will continue to support C40B
and all other housing statutes and regulations that increase affordable housing
choices for persons with intellectual disabilities living within the
Commonwealth. Thank you very much for
allowing me the opportunity to speak today, and if there are ever any questions
that you or your colleagues have with regard to housing policy related to
persons with disabilities, I welcome your inquiries.
______________________________
* Priced Out, September 2005, Technical Assistance Collaborative, Inc. | Boston, MA
Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Housing Task Force | Washington, D.C.
Foreword by Senator Jack Reed (D-Rhode Island)