Program Description

Program/Practice Description: FSS is a HUD program designed to help families in the housing voucher program and public housing build assets and increase their earnings to make progress to economic security. FSS combines stable, affordable housing with case management services to help families overcome barriers to work and an asset account that grows as families incomes grow. Public housing agencies (PHAs) work with welfare agencies, schools, businesses, and other local partners to develop a comprehensive program that gives participating FSS family members the skills and experience they need to obtain employment that pays a living wage.

For more information, please see www.fsspartnerships.org and http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/hcv/fss

Background/Program History: FSS was established by Congress in 1990 by section 554 of the National Affordable Housing Act. It is a successor program to Project Self-Sufficiency and Operation Bootstrap. FSS was created to help promote employment among, and boost the assets of, low-income families participating in certain federal housing programs.

Innovations and Results: FSS can help increase the share of public housing or Section 8 families that are working and to increase families earnings and assets. Of particular importance, FSS can help encourage work among welfare recipients so they find a job before they lose their income due to time limits. The FSS escrow account is the largest financial work incentive for families with Section 8 vouchers or public housing units funded by HUD. FSS is also one of the largest asset-building programs for poor families in the country. Pointing to the effectiveness of the FSS program and strategy, a 2005 evaluation of the program found that FSS participants experienced much larger increases in income than non-participants between 1996 and 2000; FSS participants on welfare experienced even greater income gains, more than doubling their incomes between 1996 and 2000; and FSS participants reduced their dependence on welfare faster than non-participants. A new evaluation published in 2011 likewise reported strong findings.