Equity Crisis Policy Report

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Equity Crisis Policy Priorities and Demands

Increasing the Affordable and Low-Income Housing Stock

Flaws in the current policies:

Over the past twenty years, beginning with the Olympics’ wave of redevelopment and displacement, the city’s housing development practices have not favored the low and moderate income renters’ community. The push for Atlanta’s complete demolition of all of its public housing units, shift in producing more “luxury” rental units, rising rental prices and the lack of accountability for the Beltline inability to construct the number of promised “affordable” housing units, have all lead to vastly decreasing means for working class Atlantans to live and work in the city. In addition to these development patterns, the definition of “affordable” as set by Atlanta’s area median income (AMI) is not reflective of the actual need of the lowest income Atlantans because the city has numerous higher income neighborhoods that are factored into the same income measure as well. This inaccurate measure for affordability, rising rents and decreasing numbers of affordable units (along with stagnant wages) have created a renters’ crisis (see Housing Justice League 2016 report) that has caused the flight of lower-income individuals from the city due to mass evictions and other consequences of the city’s inability to maximize opportunities to create more affordable housing opportunities.

Current “solutions”:

Beltline Affordable Housing Trust Fund and Downpayment Assistance Program, Atlanta Land Trust Collaborative, Invest Atlanta’s Homebuyer’s incentives, AHA housing (seven year wait list)

Previously suggested solutions:

1. Replace the AMI affordable housing need measure with a Neighborhood Median Income to better fit the needs of Atlanta’s lowest income individuals

2. Renter’s Rights Protection Laws: Work with Fulton County to implement a Just Cause Ordinance to protect the rights of tenants who are facing eviction.

3. Implement Right of First Refusal policy to protect tenants in affordable units from being displaced by renovation driven gentrification

4. Preserve existing dilapidated and underused spaces for affordable housing opportunities and ensure that they are accessible to equitable work, health and recreational opportunities.

Available resources:

Housing Justice League’s Renter’s State of Emergency Report

What other cities have done:

New Orleans Resilient Housing Plan

What #ATLisREADY Demands:

Replace Area Media Income with Neighborhood Median Income to accurately measure the need for affordable housing. Accelerate the development of the Beltline’s designated 5600 work-force/affordable housing units for completion over the next year. Mandate a one-to-one unit ratio of affordable to luxury apartments for future Beltline developments.

Address and alleviate the low-income utility burden

Issue:

According to The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) and Energy Efficiency for All (EEFA) coalition’s recent report detailed that Atlanta’s low-income households spend 10.2% of their monthly incomes on utility bills while high income households nationally spend about 2.3%. Atlanta’s low-income households are above the national average of 7.2%. This is largely due to low-income households being more likely to be tenants in inefficient buildings, often lacking control over heating, cooling or the power to make efficiency upgrades. This burden disproportionately affects low-income families of color. These same low-income households in living in inefficient homes have health impacts (i.e higher instances of respiratory disease). Due to the lack of energy efficient environments and high utility costs, families are unable to spend more on fresh/healthy food and leisure activities. Atlanta is the third leading major metropolitan area for low income utility burden by percentage.

Previously suggested solutions:

Implementation of a Statewide Clean Power Plan has been recommended. The Clean Power Plan, when implemented in the most cost-effective way, could actually cut the average Georgia household’s electricity bill by 8.9 percent, eliminating any increase and saving that household a total of $2,070 over the next 15 years. This would represent a cumulative electricity bill savings of $8.5 billion – money that can be used for other household goods and services rather than paying for out-of-state coal and natural gas to run Georgia’s power plants. Atlanta has recently published the Power to Change Sustainability framework and a Climate Action Plan. The recommendations in this plan center statewide incentive and subsidy programs, home inspection incentives, energy appliance replacement incentives and on-bill financing efficiency improvement options.

Critique of these solutions:

While these are good solutions, the average low-income renter may not have access to information about these incentives or alternative resources on how to make home improvements to reduce their utility burden. Recommendations surrounding the construction of new energy efficient properties are also included but with no mandate applied for the development of low-income/affordable housing, these renters will not benefit equitably.

What other cities have done:

California, Louisiana and Colorado have all made state-level improvements to their energy policies to facilitate equitable access to solar energy solutions. The Center for American Progress suggest the following:

1. Expanding community solar programs like CSGs because of the flexibility and inclusivity of their arrangements and ability to secure low prices due to bulk purchases.

2. Using brownfield properties (property that is not environmentally suitable for habitation) for solar sites.

3. Establishing green banks, property assessed clean energy (PACE) programs, loan loss reserve programs, and securitization programs to help finance solar installations for households who may not normally have access to these funding opportunities.

What #ATLisREADY Demands:

City Council recommend State legislation that incentivizes residential energy efficiency; particularly for low-income households. Increase the promotion of existing alternative energy solutions and programs.

Identify and resource sustainable solutions to address and eradicate the homelessness crisis

Current policies:

The City of Atlanta’s current policies surrounding homelessness primarily include private sector shelter services and outreach from local organizations. Both the city of Atlanta and Fulton County lack policy priorities to address and eradicate the affordable housing crisis. The Fulton County Community Service Board’s poor management of mental health services, lack of living wage low-skilled labor opportunities and the continued pro-stadium/Beltline/amenities/police related investment over investment in homelessness safety net decisions have all combined to maintain a persistent state of homelessness for thousands of Atlantans.

Acknowledging the city’s priorities and previous policymaking decisions are a major catalyst in triggering a regional equity crisis.

Flaws in the current policies:

Atlanta’s surrounding metropolitan area is contributing to the rise in suburban poverty; spatial mismatch, stable employment, lack of adequate health care and social service safety nets to connect the suburban poor to critical resources. Post-recession Atlanta has one of the nation’s highest suburbanized poverty rates in the nation. In the year 2000, 76 percent of metro-Atlanta’s poor lived in the region’s suburbs and by 2010, the number had increased to 87 percent (Confronting Suburban Poverty in America). This rise in suburbanized poverty coincides with the city’s notorious housing policy decision mandating the complete demolition of public housing stock and the resettlement of many housing voucher recipients into low-income housing solutions in the suburban area. Atlanta’s suburban cities were characteristically higher income areas with resources that fit its demographic and lacked the proper safety net to handle the influx of the former urban poor. In addition to this, the lack of connectivity of Metro-Atlanta’s public transit system and the city’s aggressive push to attract more jobs to the urban core coupled with its rapid redevelopment has caused rampant gentrification and rising home prices has pushed even more moderate and low-income people into the suburbs.

Current “solutions”:

The Atlanta Regional Commission has a number of resources, including their PLAN 2040 addressing the rise of poverty, housing challenges, commuter costs and other regional equity issues. This is a viable resource for public policy change.