Estimated 60,000 people set to prematurely lose U.S. federal housing assistance

But the Department of Housing and Urban Development said the money is running out early. In late April, HUD wrote to the nation’s public housing authorities — which administer the federal program — with an estimate of how much cash is left to maintain the project.

The remaining funds are likely to support families for another 18 months at most, housing officials said. After that, the officials and housing experts said, many of the people who relied on the program are likely to again become homeless.

HUD blamed the Biden administration for the early demise of the program, which was funded by the American Rescue Plan Act.

“Due to rapidly increasing inflation and housing costs during the Biden administration, HUD estimates that funding for [emergency housing vouchers] will only cover such costs through 2026,” a spokesperson for the agency said in an email, adding that it would explore “additional options” for families supported by the program.

Kim Johnson, senior director of policy at the National Low Income Housing Coalition, which advocates affordable housing, said the end of the program represents “an awful cycle”: “Our assistance ran out because rent is too expensive, so now you have to figure out how to pay for your expensive rent on your own, even though you couldn’t afford it.”

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