Laconia Housing Authority warns voucher funding shortfall could reduce local housing access

Laconia Housing Authority Executive Director Kathy Bowler and Housing Director Kelly Bocan told the Laconia City Council on Feb. 10 that the agency faces a shortfall in federal Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) funding that already forced it to suspend issuing vouchers and could lead to vouchers being recalled.

The shortfall stems from rising market rents and federal funding that has not kept pace, Bowler said. Laconia Housing began 2024 with about $82,000 in reserves and received approximately $4,118,000 in HUD funding for the HCV program but spent roughly $4,347,000, resulting in about a $146,000 shortfall for the calendar year 2024, Bowler said. The authority currently holds 509 vouchers assigned by HUD but used 445 last year; to fully utilize 509 vouchers at the authority’s 2024 average subsidy ($833 per voucher) the authority would need about $5,222,000.

Why it matters: the HCV program — commonly known as Section 8 — helps low-income households afford private-market housing by paying the landlord the difference between a tenant’s share (typically about 30% of adjusted income) and a HUD-approved rent. Laconia Housing warned that if Congress or the Senate provides a reduced allocation this spring, the authority could face a deeper deficit and be required to stop issuing vouchers or, in a worst-case scenario, pull vouchers from households already using them.

Bowler…