Report Shows Promising Results for the Family Self-Sufficiency Program

In 2014, Congress extended authority for HUD’s Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program to owners of Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) properties. Originally, Congress created the FSS program in 1990 to help housing assistance recipients increase their incomes and build their savings. Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) recipients contribute 30 percent of their income toward rent and utilities, with the voucher paying the remaining housing costs up to the public housing agency’s payment standard. Typically, as recipients’ incomes rise, so do the rents they must pay.