Let’s invite Ben Carson to visit NM

HUD nominee needs to see housing crisis

During Dr. Ben Carson’s nominating hearing he mentioned his intention to do a “listening tour” once he assumed his responsibility as the secretary of Housing and Urban Development to help him determine the country’s housing needs. I would like New Mexico to join me in inviting Dr. Carson to make New Mexico his first stop. We are amidst a housing crisis not unlike much of America.

I am currently working as a family navigator for Las Cumbres Community Services in Taos, where I connect families to community resources. There is no doubt the difficulty in finding affordable housing is one of the greatest challenges our families face every day.

The majority of families we work with are low income. The local Housing Authority has nearly 1,000 people on their wait lists. There are several low income projects built with Tax Credit Housing funds but not nearly enough to address the magnitude of need.

I expect this is the case across the state of New Mexico.

We must look at housing as a health issue as it is a social determinant of health outcomes. According to the policy. mic website, in New Mexico one would need to work 64-plus hours a week to pay for a market rate one bedroom apartment if you earn minimum wage and your housing burden is onethird of your income.

That does not leave much time for healthy family life, especially when many our families are single mothers with fathers who refuse to pay child support. If people cannot find stable housing, their children will suffer socially and emotionally.

The many providers who work with the housing crisis in our state would like very much to meet with Dr. Carson during his “listening tour.”

He said, “I want to hear from the people with boots on the ground who are administering programs.” Well, we should send the message to Dr. Carson that our boots are on the ground and we promise to talk and hope he will listen.