• What is the housing voucher program?
  Created in the 1970s, the Section 8 housing voucher program has grown into the dominant form of federal housing assistance. Low-income families use vouchers to help pay for housing that they find in the private market. The program is federally funded, but vouchers are distributed by a network of 2,600 state, regional, and local housing agencies.
• Who is eligible for vouchers?
  Vouchers are a critical form of assistance for low-income families with children, the elderly, and the disabled. Federal rules ensure that vouchers are targeted at the families who need them most.

• How does a family use a voucher?
  Once a family receives a voucher, it has at least 60 days to find housing. Due to shortages of affordable housing and some landlords' reluctance to accept vouchers, not every family is able to use its voucher.
• How much rent do vouchers cover?
  A family with a voucher is generally required to contribute 30 percent of its income for rent and utilities. The voucher then pays the rest of those costs, up to a limit (called a "payment standard") set by the housing agency.
• Are vouchers used only to help cover rental costs?
  No. Vouchers are sometimes used to help with mortgage payments, enabling low-income families to purchase homes. Also, up to 20 percent of vouchers can be tied to a particular building rather than a particular family and thus can help pay for the construction or rehabilitation of housing for low-income families; such vouchers are called "project-based" vouchers.
• How are vouchers funded?
  Each local housing agency gets federal funding each year based on the estimated cost of its vouchers in use and of its administrative costs. In addition, local agencies have access to certain reserves when costs change unpredictably over the course of the year.
• How effective are vouchers?
  Research has shown that vouchers not only are a highly effective form of housing assistance but also lead to positive outcomes for children, reduced welfare receipt, and success for low-income adults in the workplace.

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