HUD funding lags could hit rural Wisconsin hardest

The Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council warns that a disruption in federal funding for the Fair Housing Initiative Program could have an outsized effect on rural and small communities across Wisconsin.

The council provides services statewide and said rural areas face unique fair housing challenges but often have fewer resources to address them.

Erika Sanders, CEO of the council, said older housing stock in rural areas creates additional challenges for people with disabilities who need accessibility modifications.

"People have the perception that rural communities are all white, and therefore race discrimination doesn't happen in those communities but that's absolutely untrue, especially in areas where Hmong refugees have settled, especially where migrant workers have settled," Sanders pointed out...

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Leo's notes: Wisconsin’s housing shortage makes fair-housing enforcement more important, not less, particularly in rural communities where options and local resources are already limited. Workforce housing policy cannot focus solely on producing units; workers and families must also have equitable access to the homes that are available. Maintaining education and enforcement capacity should be viewed as part of the infrastructure supporting a functional statewide housing market.