Turner seeks to give youth aging out of foster care more access to housing assistance

Youth aging out of foster care would have more access to affordable housing without increasing federal spending under legislation reintroduced on Monday by U.S. Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH).

The Fostering Stable Housing Opportunities Act would allow minors to apply for housing assistance when they turn 16 years old, and minors would receive priority preference for housing assistance six months before they turn 18 and age out of foster care.

“Aging out of foster care should not mean aging into homelessness,” Turner said. “The Fostering Stable Housing Opportunities Act will remove obstacles blocking these vulnerable youths’ access to safe housing during their overnight transition into adulthood. When we provide young adults the tools to succeed we can create a better future and place them on a path to stable, independent lives.”

Researchers estimate that between 11 and 37 percent of youth who age out of foster care have experienced homelessness, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said in a 2014 report. “Studies estimate that 25 to 50 percent of young adults exiting care couch surf, double up, move frequently within a short period of time, have trouble paying rent, and face eviction,” the report said.

After Turner introduced the bill in the 114th Congress, leaders of the Alumni of Care Together Improving Outcomes Now (ACTION) Ohio threw their support behind the legislation.

“The Fostering Stable Housing Opportunities Act is not only brilliant, it is long overdue,” Lisa Dickson, the communications chair of ACTION Ohio, said. “The time is now to make this act a reality. It offers a creative solution to help, with no additional spending required, by allowing foster care youth who are at risk of ‘aging out’ of foster care to apply for housing assistance when they reach 16 years old, and allowing them to jump to the front of the waitlist when they are about to ‘age out’ of foster care.”

The measure was also endorsed by the national Center for Housing and Child Welfare, the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, Ohio Association of Child Caring Agencies, Lighthouse Youth Services of Ohio, the Center of Vocational Alternatives of Ohio, and the Ohio Youth Advisory Board.