Arlington’s voucher program warns of funding shortfall, pauses new issuances

Caleb Kopsik, Executive Director of Arlington’s Housing Choice Voucher program, told the county committee that the HCV program is 100% federally funded through HUD and that funding is allocated based on prior spending rather than current need. “HUD is moving us to what’s called NSPIRE,” he said, and he warned that Congress’ allocation process and rising rents have left local agencies short of resources.

Kopsik said Arlington serves about 1,642 families (3,104 individuals) through vouchers, with an average household income near $30,058. He described how the agency manages demand via a waiting list and randomized lottery: when Arlington reopened its wait list in 2023 it received more than 19,000 pre‑applications and retained a randomized sample to populate the active list. He added that because funding “has not necessarily kept up with the amount of expenses,” the program has curtailed issuing new vouchers for the remainder of the year.

The presentation enumerated voucher types—tenant‑based, Family Unification Program, Veterans Affairs supportive housing, mainstream vouchers for people with disabilities and property‑based vouchers. Kopsik said Arlington currently operates a single property‑based voucher site (Culpeper Gardens) and plans to expand property‑based options when funding and units (especially 3‑ and 4‑bedroom accessible units) become available.

The county encouraged continued outreach to state and federal representatives and noted that portability rules let families move and potentially port vouchers between jurisdictions, subject to program limits.