Housing Recommendations

• Local Recommendations
• State Recommendations
• Federal Recommendations
• TBI-Specific Recommendations

Local Recommendations

1. Build disability coalitions: Disability groups should form coalitions with other disability groups to meet with local housing officials and inform them about disability housing needs.
2. Assess needs completely: Assessment of unmet housing needs of people with disabilities should include those who (1) are rent burdened; (2) live in institutions; (3) are homeless; (4) are eligible for housing assistance but not eligible for SSI; and (5) live at home with family members.
3. Document housing needs: Coalitions should attend Consolidated Plan and Public Housing Authority (PHA) Plan hearings, participate in housing needs assessment and advocate funding for disability housing, including expanded accessibility modification funding.
4. Provide mainstream vouchers: Coalitions should urge every PHA to provide Mainstream vouchers. PHAs should collaborate with nonprofit agencies to administer them.
5. Assure housing assistance: PHAs should direct housing assistance to persons with extremely low incomes and to persons with disabilities who receive SSI.
6. Assure accessible housing: PHAs should make their programs accessible to persons with disabilities, including non-elderly disabled persons. PHAs should routinely grant higher rental subsidies to persons who need accessible housing.
7. Address disability homelessness: Coalitions should advocate with local providers for the long-term needs of homeless persons with disabilities.
8. Confront housing discrimination: Coalitions should collaborate with local fair housing groups to enforce anti-discrimination laws in public and private housing.
9. Share housing information: Coalitions and housing agencies should provide easily-understood information about housing programs.

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State Recommendations

1. Build a statewide coalition: Statewide disability organizations should form a coalition to meet with Ohio Department of Development (ODOD) and should advocate (1) more housing assistance for persons with disabilities: (2) more funding for accessibility modifications; (3) housing assistance for homeless persons with disabilities; (4) enforcement of antidiscrimination laws, and (5) more affordable housing stock.
2. Collaborate with COHHIO: The coalition should work with the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio and other housing advocates to increase affordable housing.
3. Expand support services: The coalition should advocate more support services so that persons with disabilities who need both support services and housing assistance are not denied both when both are not available simultaneously.
4. Enforce fair housing laws: Fair housing officials should work with disability groups to promptly address housing discrimination, should identify areas where accessible housing is scarce and should work with local fair housing advocates to increase accessible housing.
5. Share best practices: Best fair housing practices should be shared across geographic regions to improve enforcement of laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability.
6. Increase accessibility funding: The Ohio Department of Development (ODOD) should increase funding for accessibility modifications and should improve public visibility of this resource. ODOD should pursue federal HOME (Home Investment Partnerships) Program funds to support local accessibility modifications and home maintenance assistance programs.
7. Expand housing tax credits: ODOD should expand tax credits for disability housing and should ensure that the housing developed is easily accessible to all persons with disabilities.

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Federal Recommendations

1. Fund mainstream vouchers: Housing and Urban Development (HUD) should fund more Mainstream vouchers and improve monitoring the impact of designated "elderly only" housing.
2. Improve supportive housing: HUD should modernize and streamline the Supportive Housing for People with Disabilities (Section 811) program and substantially increase its availability.
3. Fund support services: HUD and other agencies should increase funding for support services, necessary for some individuals with disabilities to use generic housing assistance.
4. Make programs accessible HUD should improve access for persons with disabilities to all its housing programs, including homeownership initiatives and programs funded under Consolidated Plans. HUD should improve monitoring to assure involvement of people with disabilities in PHA Plans and Consolidated Plans on the state and local level.
5. Expand homelessness programs: HUD should improve and expand McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance programs to address the long-term needs of persons with disabilities who are homeless. HUD should assure that state and local agencies include local disability advocates in their McKinney planning processes.
6. Set realistic fair market rents: HUD should improve its process for determining Fair Market Rents to accurately reflect market rates for comparable, accessible units, so that more rental housing will remain available to persons with low incomes. PHAs should routinely, and without exception, provide these increased rates for voucher recipients who need accessible apartments.
7. Enforce fair housing laws: HUD and Department of Justice should vigorously enforce the accessibility requirements of the Fair Housing Amendments Act, Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (as amended) to improve the availability of housing for persons with disabilities and to address housing discrimination they so often face.

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TBI-Specific Recommendations

1. Designate a home agency: Ohio should designate a lead agency charged with responsibility to coordinate and fund a statewide system of services for persons with traumatic brain injury.
2. Fund case management: Ohio should establish and fund a system to provide service coordination or case management services for persons with traumatic brain injury.
3. Fund support services: Ohio should develop and fund a system of community based support services for persons with traumatic brain injury.
4. Disseminate information: Information and training resources on traumatic brain injury should be made available to the variety of agencies used by persons with traumatic brain injury.
5. Educate legislators and administrators: Disability coalitions should educate state legislators and state and local agencies about the needs of persons with traumatic brain injury and their families and about the lack of services available in Ohio to meet those needs.
6. Form TBI collaboratives: Persons with traumatic brain injury and their advocates should form collaboratives in their communities to identify local problems faced by persons with traumatic brain injury and their families and to facilitate solutions.

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