Section 8 future unclear in Colorado Springs, application period still happening

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — The future of Section 8, or the Housing Choice Voucher Program, through the Colorado Springs Housing Authority (CSHA) is still unclear.

News5 was the first to report in April that the program was paused, meaning the nearly 3,000 people on a waiting list won't be allowed into the program at this time. The recipients who were already utilizing the vouchers were not impacted, but the funding timeline is in limbo.
President Donald Trump's proposed budget includes major cuts to Section 8 housing, a program that was originally supposed to be funded through 2035. The program is funded through the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

"For decades, Republicans have promised to restore fiscal sanity to Washington," HUD Secretary Scott Turner posted to social media this week. "President Trump is delivering results. @POTUS’ One Big Beautiful Bill will cut the deficit and help balance the checkbook in D.C."

Despite the proposed funding cuts, the executive director at CSHA says the annual July application period will still happen in case the funding situation changes. The period is only open for 48 hours.

SECTION 8 WAITING LIST ACCEPTING ONLINE PRE-APPLICATIONS:

-Application period opens July 15 at noon
-Application period closes July 17 at noon
-Click here for information on how to apply

CSHA held its monthly board meeting Thursday afternoon, where the Executive Director provided an update explaining that their budget has to be in place before the federal budget has to be in place, making it challenging to predict the future. He believes that in a worst-case scenario, they have enough funds to last about 18 months as of the beginning of June for the Section 8 program.

"There is a lot of uncertainty in the budget," Chairman of the CSHA board Eddie Rodriguez told News5. "Unfortunately, the biggest thing we can do right now is wait, because it really just flows down to us again. Obviously, we are monitoring in terms of what the final impact is. And we are, and always have been, a very conservative agency in terms of being financially prepared. We have many months of reserves, and in general, we will communicate and try to plan to alleviate this as best we can."

According to President Trump's budget proposal, the responsibility for funding programs like this will fall on the states.

"The Budget empowers States by transforming the current Federal dysfunctional rental assistance programs into a State-based formula grant which would allow States to design their own rental assistance programs based on their unique needs and preferences," a letter outlining President Trump's Budget requests reads. "The Budget would also newly institute a two-year cap on rental assistance for able-bodied adults, and would ensure a majority of rental assistance funding through States would go to the elderly and disabled. A State-based formula program would also lead to significant terminations of Federal regulations. In combination with efforts related to opening up Federal lands, this model would incentivize States and the private sector to provide affordable housing. This proposal would encourage States to provide funding to share in the responsibility to ensure that similar levels of recipients can benefit from the block grant."

Rodriguez adding that no matter what the future of the budget holds, CSHA is working for the community.

"It's a huge difference for being someone on the street versus having a place that they can anchor themselves," Rodriguez said. "That's why I and many of the members of the board are so passionate about this cause. So again, just like we have always run this program, in terms of a long-term successful program... So because of that, we actively try to find deals that are long-term deals that overall benefit the community for the long run."

Rodriguez is pointing to one of CSHA's projects that just broke ground. An 83-unit complex offering affordable housing for seniors just west of Memorial Park is known as the Village at Homewood Point II. Rodriguez said that the project just broke ground last month. The Executive Director of CSHA, Chad Wright, explained this project comes just a few years after their Shooks Run Low-Income Housing Tax Credit project in 2021 which added 40 affordable family units to an area off Fountain Boulevard near downtown.

"I would also add that we have been a designated 'High-Performer' in our major HUD programs for over a decade and have approximately 12 years of 'unmodified clean' audit reports from our third-party audit firm," Wright wrote to News5. "We are proud to have a track record of sound management over time."

CSHA owns the complexes, as Rodriguez notes, that means they can keep the units affordable for low-income residents.

"The message is we are actively trying to do the best we can," Rodriguez said. "We want to help as many people as possible."

There have been multiple viewers who have reached out to News5 in recent weeks, saying they have had major communication issues with CSHA.

"We do experience a high volume of calls and messages, and staff do try to return calls/messages as quickly and efficiently as they can," Wright wrote to News5. "We also receive some complaints and try to address the complaints as quickly as we can. Turnover can impact that process, and staff do work diligently to address both the requirements of the program and customer needs. We do receive positive feedback from HUD in addressing complaints and in how we handle our program in these challenging times."

News5 learned through an open records request that as of Dec. 31, 2024 CSHA employed 56 people, as of last week there were 52 people employed at CSHA.

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