Constraints and opportunities for innovation in the Moving to Work Demonstration Program

ABSTRACT

The Moving to Work (MTW) Demonstration Program provides participating housing agencies with additional programmatic and operational flexibility that is used to achieve Congress’s statutory goals. The MTW Demonstration Program is designed to provide agencies with the flexibility to pursue innovative activities, yet there are myriad constraints that alter the behavior of these agencies. This study uses evidence generated from interviews with personnel from MTW agencies to understand how they use MTW to address and overcome bureaucratic, resource, and market constraints to further their mission. The findings from this study enhance our understanding of MTW agencies, their decision-making, and how they innovate in a constrained environment. These results are relevant to a wide audience, including existing MTW agencies, public housing authorities that are considering MTW designation under the new expansion, housing researchers, as well as policymakers and practitioners who focus on federal housing policy and innovation in public agencies.

KEYWORDS:

• Moving to Work
• public housing authorities
• housing agencies
• housing policy
• innovation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. Although most MTW agencies are public housing authorities (PHAs), not all are. For example, Alaska Housing Finance Corporation has MTW status but is a state housing finance agency. Only a small proportion of PHAs have MTW status but some of the largest PHAs are involved in the program.

2. The definition of self-sufficiency and the metrics to track it are not consistent across housing agencies. Generally, self-sufficiency is referred to as the process in which an individual or household increases their earned income so they are no longer dependent on public assistance or rental subsidies. Recognizing the multiple barriers that households face, such as physical or mental health issues that stifle economic earnings, many housing agencies have redefined the definition and metrics adopted to track a broader application of self-sufficiency.

3. Not all MTW agencies have the same funding structure. The funding agreement for each MTW agency is included in Attachment A of the MTW Agreement, which is publicly available on: https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/mtw.

4. MTW agencies primarily serve extremely-low income households, which are households earning under 30 percent of the area median income.

5. Challenges related to the HCV program are especially prevalent in high-cost cities in the Western region of the United States. Approximately two-thirds of the MTW agencies interviewed are located in the West which explains why many interviewees emphasized challenges related to the HCV program.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Rebecca J. Walter

Rebecca J. Walter is an Assistant Professor in the Runstad Department of Real Estate in the College of Built Environments at the University of Washington.

Gregg Colburn

Gregg Colburn is an Assistant Professor in the Runstad Department of Real Estate in the College of Built Environments at the University of Washington.

Anaid Yerena

Anaid Yerena is an Assistant Professor in Urban Studies at the University of Washington, Tacoma.

Melony Pederson

Melony Pederson is a graduate student in the Runstad Department of Real Estate in the College of Built Environments at the University of Washington.

Rachel Fyall

Rachel Fyall  is an Assistant Professor in Evans School of Public Policy and Governance at the University of Washington.

Kyle Crowder

Kyle Crowder is a Professor in Sociology at the University of Washington.