The Section 8 Designated Housing program provides Section 8 vouchers to PHAs that have an approved HUD Allocation Plan for their federal public housing units to: (1) implement “elderly only” housing policies; (2) implement “disabled only” housing policies; or (3) implement “mixed elderly/disabled” housing policies. Only non-elderly people with disabilities (under 62 years old) can receive vouchers from this set-aside, which are intended to expand the supply of Section 8 housing opportunities for non-elderly people with disabilities who may have been negatively impacted by PHA designation policies. It is extremely important to note that under current Section 8 appropriation language, PHAs are required to maintain these vouchers for their “intended purpose” even after the Annual Contributions Contract is renewed and the vouchers are all initially leased-up. HUD has yet to provide PHAs with notice of this Congressional requirement. Because they can only be issued to people with disabilities, these vouchers are a potential source of funding for supportive housing.

PHAs must submit Allocation Plans to HUD in order to designate a number of units as "elderly only," "disabled only," or "mixed." Across the country, many PHAs have chosen to implement "elderly only" housing, thereby diminishing the supply of affordable housing options for people with disabilities.

The disability community is encouraged to investigate whether their local PHA has submitted an Allocation Plan to HUD (a listing of all PHAs with approved or pending Allocation Plans is available here) and if so, they should contact their PHA about what steps have been taken to make up for this loss of affordable housing for people with disabilities.

Fiscal Year 2002 Awards (PDF)
Fiscal Year 2001 Awards (PDF)
For more information on the Designated Housing Vouchers, read TAC's Opening Doors, Issue 15.