2026 Moving to Work (MTW) Plan Amendment

NOTICE OF PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD

The Tacoma Housing Authority (THA) will open the public comment period for an amendment to the 2026 Moving to Work (MTW) Plan.

Through THA’s annual MTW plan, THA outlines its priorities and how we will use our MTW flexibility to continue to serve our participants, community, and our partners in 2026.  The amended 2026 MTW Plan clarifies the use of its property-based subsidy rent calculation in Activity 16 and re-proposes Activity 26 to maintain its schedule of implementing payment standard changes. Additionally, THA is amending and reproposing Activities 5 & 6 to seek approval to change the tenant’s portion of rent.

Residents, voucher holders, partners, and community members are invited to submit comments on the proposed changes. The comment period begins on Friday, July 10, 2026 and will last for 30 days. All comments must be received by 5:00 pm on Monday, August 9, 2026.

To submit a public comment, you may send an email to .

Proposed Changes to Payment Standards Implementation

What changes are being proposed?

THA is seeking approval from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to waive the regulation in the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act (HOTMA) that requires housing authorities to implement increases in the payment standard “one year following the effective date of the increase in the payment standard amount.”

Why is THA proposing changes?

THA is seeking approval to process payment standard increases and decreases on a schedule the agency determines each year based on funding availability, administrative ease, and housing stability. Without this MTW flexibility, THA would have to conform to the HOTMA rule and process payment standard increases outside of its practices and the regular certification cycle, adding to administrative costs.  

Proposed Changes to Property-Based Subsidy Model

What changes are being proposed?

THA is seeking approval to expand the use of the property-based subsidy rent calculation by applying it to project-based voucher and Rental Assistance Demonstration project-based voucher developments. These properties may be owned by THA or its partners.

Why is THA proposing changes?

Expanding the activity in this way would provide THA another, more cost-effective way to subsidize new housing developments. THA is hopeful that this will enable more affordable housing development in Tacoma.

Proposed Changes to Tenant Rent Portions

What changes are being proposed?

THA is seeking approval from HUD that would allow us to:

1. Increase tenant rent by up to 3.5 percentage points (from 28.5% to 32%).
2. Subsidize rent, not utilities.

Why is THA proposing changes?

THA is considering a small increase in the amount tenants pay toward rent because the agency is facing growing financial challenges because of a variety of reasons.

• It costs more than ever to operate our housing programs.
• Federal funding levels have decreased.
• Funding for Emergency Housing Vouchers ended earlier than originally anticipated, and we may need to move those customers into our other programs so they remain housed.

Even though THA has and will continue to cut costs wherever possible, we still need additional funds to continue to house and support all families who depend on us. A small increase in the rent that tenants pay would ensure that current THA households will continue to receive housing assistance. This change could also help us serve new families and individuals in need of housing assistance on our waitlist.

Proposal #1: Increase Tenant Rent

We are seeking approval for a modest increase in tenants’ share of the rent. This means tenants would pay a little bit more each month.

The amount tenants pay toward rent is based on income bands. Currently, tenants pay 28.5% of the lowest income in their band.

Proposal #1 Impacts

To understand how this change would impact families, THA looks at how much the rent burden would change. Tenant rent burden is how much of a family’s income goes towards housing expenses.

• 30% or less is considered not rent burdened.
• 31–40% is considered moderately rent burdened.
• 41–50% is considered a high rent burden.
• More than 50% is severely rent burdened.

Average tenant rent burden would increase from 27% to 30% for tenants renting below the payment standards. (The payment standard is what THA defines as affordable rent. Tenants are advised to rent at or below the payment standard. THA will not subsidize the portion of rent that is above the payment standard.)

• A 3.5 percentage point increase would cost families an average of $63 per month.
• THA would save about $1 million per year.

Proposal #1 Considerations:

Due to funding regulations, residents at THA’s properties can only have their rent increased by 1.5 percentage points. Any increase of more than 1.5 percentage points would apply only to THA voucher holders.

Though THA is seeking approval for an increase of up to 3.5 percentage points, the final decision may be lower.

Implementation would likely take place over the course of 2027.

Proposal #2: Remove Utilities from the Rent Calculation for Tenant-Based Voucher Holders

THA estimates how much a tenant pays toward utilities based on bedroom size. This amount is called the “utility allowance”. Currently, a tenant’s utility allowance is subtracted from the tenant share of rent. That is, if the family pays some or all utilities, they pay a reduced share of the rent.

If THA removes the utility allowance, the tenant’s share would not be reduced. The tenant’s full share would go towards rent, and they would also be responsible for paying utilities.

Proposal #2 Impacts

Average tenant rent burden would increase by 7 percentage points, from 27% to 34% for tenants renting below the payment standards. On average, households would be moderately rent burdened by this change.

The average cost to tenants would be $130/mo. 

THA would save about $1.3 million per year.

Proposal #2 Considerations

THA recognizes this change would significantly impact families paying utilities. Utility assistance is available through Tacoma Public Utilities (TPU) and MDC (Metropolitan Development Council) to assist low-income households. Last year, THA clients received roughly $50k in assistance through various sources. Tenants at THA properties have already been enrolled in the Bill Credit Assistance Program (BCAP). THA will be exploring if there are ways to support enrolling voucher families in TPU’s Bill Credit Assistance Program.

• Apply online or download an application by going to MyTPU.org/Assistance

FAQs

When will I know if my rent is changing?

Before any changes can be made, THA must get approval from the Board of Commissioners and HUD. Once Congress has passed the 2027 budget, THA can determine how much we need to increase tenant rent. At that time, we will also consider whether to remove the utility allowance.

Once we know what changes will be made, all families will be notified of the changes.

You can track updates on the federal budget on our website: Federal Funding & Policies

What will happen if THA does not make these changes?

Currently, we are unable to issue new vouchers. This will continue for the foreseeable future if we do not make changes. Additionally, depending on the amount of federal funding we receive, we may have to remove some families from our programs.

Share Your Feedback

If you have thoughts on these changes, you are invited to send your feedback to .

All public comments will be compiled and the themes shared with the Board of Commissioners when they meet to vote on this proposal.

Attend a Public Hearing 

You can also attend a virtual public hearing to share your questions and comments: 

Virtual Public Hearing for THA’s Amended 2026 MTW Plan

• Date/time: July 29, 2026 at 3:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)    
• Join online via Zoom
  • Link coming soon!

The hearing is accessible to persons with disabilities. Persons requiring special accommodations should contact Jess Thompson (, 235-448-2795), before 4:00 p.m. the day before the meeting.