A proposed federal rule would allow housing agencies to impose work requirements of up to 40 hours per week on adults receiving rental assistance and set time limits as short as two years. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates 3.7 million people would be at risk of losing their housing, more than half of them children.
The rule applies to two of the largest rental assistance programs: Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8) and public housing. Private owners of subsidized developments could impose the same restrictions through a third program, Project-Based Rental Assistance.
3.7 million people at risk. More than half are children. The work requirement is 40 hours per week with a 2-year time limit.
Who Actually Lives in Assisted Housing
Most adults in voucher households already work. The ones who don’t are overwhelmingly people with disabilities, elderly residents, or caregivers of young children. The proposed rule says seniors and people with disabilities are “largely exempt,” but CBPP’s analysis found the exemptions contain gaps that would still put many at risk.
The families most likely to lose housing are those where adults work part-time, seasonal, or gig jobs that don’t consistently hit 40 hours per week. A home health aide who works 35 hours. A warehouse worker whose shifts fluctuate. A single parent who can’t find childcare past 6 PM.
Under the rule, any of them could lose their voucher after 24 months.
The Evidence on Work Requirements
Rigorous research shows work requirements do not increase employment. They increase paperwork. A CBPP analysis of work requirements in other programs found that in Arkansas, Medicaid work requirements caused 18,000 people to lose health coverage while employment did not increase. The people who lost coverage were mostly already working but couldn’t navigate the reporting system.
Housing is harder to replace than a doctor’s appointment. The Section 8 waitlist averages 2.5 years nationally and stretches past 10 years in some cities. A family that loses a voucher doesn’t just rejoin the line. They start over, often from a shelter.
The Funding Side
Separately, the House Appropriations Committee approved a 2026 HUD funding bill that cuts public housing funding and fails to increase voucher funding to keep pace with rising rents. CBPP estimates this could leave over 400,000 more people without stable, affordable housing. Combined with the work requirement rule, the squeeze comes from both directions: fewer vouchers and stricter conditions on the ones that remain.
The national median rent for a two-bedroom apartment now exceeds $1,400 per month. A household earning minimum wage would need to work 89 hours per week to afford that without assistance. The gap between wages and rent is not a personal failure. It is a math problem.
What you can do now
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Call your senators at (202) 224-3121 and tell them to oppose housing work requirements in the reconciliation bill. The Senate has not yet voted on these provisions. Ask specifically whether your senator supports time limits on rental assistance for families with children.
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Submit a public comment on the proposed rule. HUD is required to accept public comments before finalizing work requirement regulations. Track the rulemaking at the Federal Register and submit comments opposing the 40-hour requirement and 2-year time limit.
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Contact your representative about the HUD funding bill. The House Appropriations Committee’s cuts have not passed the full House. Ask your member to restore voucher funding to keep pace with rent increases. Find your representative.
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Connect with local housing advocacy through the National Low Income Housing Coalition to track the rule’s progress and organize in your state.