The Minnesota Senior Federation issues committees serve to mobilize members and to act for change. MnSF’s standing committees include health action, affordable housing, income security/tax and the Medicare Justice Coalition. Subcommittees develop when the need arises (i.e. Social Security action committee and utilities committee). Metro Region chapters address local issues ranging from transportation in the Greater Ramsey County chapter to home and community-based care in the Northwest Hennepin chapter. There is a place in MnSF for everyone to get involved.

Issues prioritization at the 2006 Metro Region convention left some MnSF housing advocates feeling a little left out. The issue of affordable housing came in fifth as an MnSF 2006-2007 issue priority. But a closer examination is revealing.

What is affordable housing? Traditionally, affordable housing specifically referred to low-income tenants paying no more than 30 percent of their monthly income for rent in federally subsidized buildings. Why 30 percent? Because that’s the limit to a senior’s portion of their income that can be devoted to rent levels that Congress set, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development makes up the difference through payment options with the building owner.

The landscape of traditional affordable housing has changed in recent years and MnSF’s issues prioritization process highlighted this trend.

MnSF’s number-one state issue voted on by delegates is an affordable housing issue - property tax reform. Utilities and transportation are affordable housing issues as well. The rising cost of fuel bills is directly connected with affordability of one’s housing and transportation is a key accessibility component of affordable housing.

While utilities and transportation issues did not make the Region’s top three, the combination of those two with affordable housing had more votes than any single one issue at the state level.

The prioritization process was an excellent reminder of how interconnected and related affordable housing issues are. If you are interested in working on issues related to affordable housing, call Max Neuhaus at 651/783-5004.