The definition of “elderly families” used to determine eligibility for certain public housing has evolved over time. Until 1992, the term encompassed low-income families whose head, spouse, or sole member was aged 62 or older, as well as low-income individuals with disabilities, regardless of age. All housing authorities were obligated by law to provide equal access to units in developments known as “elderly buildings” to both elderly persons and persons with disabilities. These developments usually consisted of efficiencies and one-bedroom units rather than the multiple-bedroom units typical of family housing. As the number of younger persons with disabilities residing in “elderly housing” increased, the complaints from their elderly neighbors also increased. Elderly residents cited the differences in values and lifestyles they had with the younger residents as impediments to safe and decent housing for the elderly. In 1992, we reported that nonelderly tenants with mental disabilities occupied between 8 and 10 percent of the units in public housing for the elderly, but were, according to public housing authorities (PHA), causing a disproportionate share of problems for the elderly residents as well as for the PHAs’ management and staff. Problems included complaints about noise, visitors, crime, and disrespectful attitudes of the younger residents toward the elderly residents. It was primarily this increase in the number of tenants with disabilities in elderly housing and the resultant complaints that led the Congress to promote designated housing in the 1992 act. First, the 1992 act established a definition of elderly persons that no longer included persons with disabilities under the age of 62. Second, the act allowed PHAs to seek approval for designating housing as elderly-only, disabled-only, or elderly and disabled through allocation plans submitted to HUD. The 1992 act laid out criteria for the contents of allocation plans and standards that HUD should use to approve the plans. Specifically, the law stipulated that approval is to be granted to only PHAs that demonstrate in their allocation plans that designation is necessary to achieve the housing goals for their jurisdictions and to meet the needs of the jurisdictions’ low-income population. PHAs that do not have approved allocation plans must continue to treat persons with disabilities and the elderly equally and allow both to live in elderly buildings on a first-come, first-serve basis. Finally, the act allowed owners of privately owned, HUD-assisted projects that were designed primarily for occupancy by elderly families to designate housing for the elderly through the establishment of elderly preferences or restrictions. Unlike PHAs that designate housing, however, owners of privately owned projects do not need to seek HUD’s approval prior to designation or to notify HUD once designation occurs. To offset the potential loss of housing for persons with disabilities and to provide them with greater housing choices, HUD set aside Section 8 rental housing certificates and vouchers for their use. Through appropriations for fiscal years 1997 and 1998 for incremental certificates and vouchers, the Congress augmented HUD’s ability to set aside Section 8 assistance for persons with disabilities displaced by public and privately owned housing designated for the elderly. Separately, HUD has also made Section 8 certificates and vouchers available to provide mainstream housing opportunities for persons with disabilities. The mainstream program is open to all housing authorities, not just those with approved allocation plans. It is popular with persons with disabilities who want to find housing in the private sector (known as “housing of choice”) rather than in public or project-based housing. Only 73 of the nation’s 3,200 PHAs had allocation plans as of November 1, 1997. These PHAs typically elected to designate units for the elderly or for the elderly and persons with disabilities combined. Of all the 73 PHAs with allocation plans, 64 designated a total of 24,902 housing units—approximately 36 percent of their housing stock for the elderly or persons with disabilities—as elderly-only. As a result, these units may no longer be available to persons with disabilities. However, persons with disabilities occupied only a portion of these units in the past, and most who resided in those units still do. Specifically, 53 of the 64 PHAs that designated units as elderly-only and provided complete occupancy data in our survey reported that when they submitted their plans, about 4,100 persons with disabilities were occupying units now designated for the elderly. The number had fallen to about 3,000 as of November 1, 1997. Overall, there has been little change in the number of persons with disabilities residing in units now designated as elderly-only, disabled-only, and elderly and disabled or in other undesignated units available to the elderly and persons with disabilities. One reason is that more than half of the PHAs with allocation plans had them approved as recently as 1996 or 1997, so the designations are relatively new. Another reason is that PHAs are not permitted to force residents with disabilities to move out of housing newly designated for the elderly and residents with disabilities may not wish to relocate. (See app. IV for our survey instrument and the complete responses to our survey.) According to HUD, 73 out of 3,200 PHAs had approved allocation plans as of November 1, 1997. HUD denied applications from another 22 PHAs, and 2 other PHAs withdrew their applications. Although some plans were approved as early as 1994, over half of them were approved in 1996 and 1997. The 73 PHAs with approved allocation plans represent a cross-section of housing authorities in terms of size and are located in 35 states. Twenty-four PHAs with approved allocation plans had fewer than 500 units of public housing, 16 had between 500 and 1,249 units, and 33 had 1,250 or more units. All but one of these PHAs—Toccoa, Georgia—reported designating housing units as part of their allocation plans. (See fig. 1.) Most of the 73 PHAs with allocation plans designated units as elderly-only. Specifically, 64 of the PHAs that have approved allocation plans reported in our survey that they designated 24,902 units as elderly-only, meaning that the units will no longer be rented to new tenants who are not at least 62 years old. Five PHAs accounted for more than a third of the units designated as elderly-only: Worcester, Massachusetts; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Minneapolis, Minnesota; San Antonio, Texas; and Chicago, Illinois. Seven PHAs designated 50 or fewer units as elderly-only. (See fig. 2.) Fewer units were designated as disabled-only or elderly and disabled. (See table 1.) Among the 64 PHAs that designated units only for the elderly, 19 also designated units in which either the elderly or persons with disabilities could be housed, and 7 also designated units as disabled-only. Four of the PHAs used all three of the possible designations. One PHA with an approved allocation plan opted not to designate any housing units. Finally, nonelderly persons with disabilities and the elderly were eligible for an additional 23,870 units at the 73 PHAs with approved allocation plans. These units were not designated as elderly- or disabled-only in the PHAs’ allocation plans but were available to these persons nonetheless. Over half of these units belonged to three PHAs: Chicago had 5,320; Baltimore, 3,662; and Minneapolis, 3,572. Of the 24,902 units designated for elderly residents, 24,471 were previously available to both the elderly and to younger persons with disabilities. About 19 percent of the units that were previously available to both types of tenants were occupied by younger persons with disabilities when the PHAs submitted their allocation plans. An additional 367 units designated as elderly-only were newly constructed or acquired, and 64 were in other types of public housing units. Overall, PHAs reported in our survey that occupancy by both persons with disabilities and the elderly declined slightly across all units between the time the PHAs submitted their allocation plans and November 1, 1997.Specifically, the 56 PHAs that provided complete occupancy data reported that occupancy by persons with disabilities in units now designated for the elderly or persons with disabilities or available to either declined by 533 households—about a 5-percent decrease. The number of units occupied by the elderly declined by 432—not quite a 2-percent decrease. (See fig. 3.) Those PHAs that had specifically designated units as elderly-only reported the same pattern as did PHAs with allocation plans generally. While overall occupancy changed little, the occupancy of persons with disabilities varied depending on whether the units were designated as elderly-only or elderly and disabled. Changes in occupancy also varied by individual PHA. Of the 53 PHAs that designated units as elderly-only and provided complete occupancy data for those units in their survey responses, 25 reported a decline in the number of persons with disabilities residing in elderly-only units. The total decrease of 1,066 occupants represented about one-quarter of the persons with disabilities residing in those PHAs’ units designated as elderly-only. The Chicago Housing Authority accounted for much of this decline, reporting 419 fewer people with disabilities residing in units now designated elderly-only. Thirteen PHAs reported no change, and 15 reported increases. One PHA reported an increase of 52 nonelderly people with disabilities occupying units that had been designated elderly-only. According to an official at this PHA, the allocation plan permits the PHA to accept near-elderly persons—including those with disabilities—if there is an insufficient number of elderly persons to occupy designated units. The increase in persons with disabilities at this PHA is due to the large number of near-elderly persons with disabilities who moved into designated units after the PHA submitted its allocation plan. Forty PHAs that designated units as elderly-only reported that 618 people with disabilities had moved out of the elderly-only units. Some of these PHAs also reported where these persons with disabilities went: 80 moved into other public housing units; 138 moved into private housing using Section 8 certificates or vouchers; and 275 moved into other housing.