Section 8

A resident named Jasmine Varela forgot she applied for a housing voucher and came to know from a letter. After being on the waitlist for 14 years, she came to know that Milwaukee County is finally offering her a Section 8 voucher.

But she struggled to find a landlord who was ready to accept the voucher before it expired. The landlords on the South side of Milwaukee refused to accept vouchers. The HUD reveals that the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program serves 2.3 Million households which means more than 16,500 people in Milwaukee County in 2022.

The program aims to increase housing access for participants but the only concern is that renters refuse to rent to people having vouchers, especially people of color.

In 2018, Milwaukee County banned landlords from rejecting Section 8 housing recipients. However, the landlords continue to discriminate against people with vouchers.

Milwaukee County has separate housing agencies to distribute Section 8 vouchers. But they don’t know how to report income-based discrimination happening in the county.

Philip Tegeler said, “If families with vouchers don’t know that they have protections, it is the responsibility of the housing authority to tell them.”

Wisconsin Watch also found out that the 120-day deadline for voucher recipients to find housing can also discourage housing due to the unlikelihood of resolving complaints. Around 1395 vouchers were issued by Milwaukee County between 2019-2023.