The Brown County Housing Authority announced it is not accepting new applications for the Housing Choice Voucher Program, citing funding issues. Those on the wait list will still be helped.Amber Edwards grew up in Indiana but ha s lived in Green Bay for more than a decade.A few years ago, her and her daughters life turned upside down.The place that we had lived in had been sold, and I couldnt find a place that we could afford fast enough, she says.Edwards went from stable housing, to homelessness and couch surfing in a blink. She was working two jobs at the time.How could this happen in Green Bay, this safe little city that I love so much, how could this happen to me? she says. But if it did, it could happen to anybody, and I realized that for the first time, that it literally could happen to anyone with one unfortunate life event.Then, Edwards applied and was accepted to the Housing Choice Voucher Program.In my mind, this voucher was a ticket to stability, she says. Brown County Housing Authority indefinitely pauses its waitlist amid limited federal fundingEdwards says it was very difficult to find a Green Bay landlord who would accept her voucher.At that time, I had not been in Wisconsin that long, so I did not have a list of local rental references that I could have vouch for me, she says.After three months of searching, Edwards finally found a new home.I dont know what I would have done because there wasnt a plan B, she says.The Housing Choice Voucher Program is a form of rental assistance funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.It is also sometimes called Section 8 housing.A voucher holder typically puts about 30% of their monthly income towards rent and utilities, while the local housing authority pays the rest.To qualify for this voucher in Brown County, a single person must earn $37,450 or less annually. There are different income requirements for families and parents.It fills a large gap that currently exists, Patrick Leifker, executive director of the Brown County Housing Authority, says. All programs have their flaws, but I think our program has done a lot to continue to meet the needs of the community.Leifker says that over the past decade, the amount the Housing Authority must cover for each individual has continued to rise, yet federal funding has stayed the same.The Housing Authority is 100% federally funded.Because of this, Leifker says their waiting list was growing faster than they could find housing for the applicants.We had to balance our ability to continue to accept new applications, knowing that the prospect of us being able to pull those individuals off of our waiting list and get them onto our housing program is limited right now, he says.On March 16, the Housing Authority stopped accepting new applications.Our waiting list numbers have continued to grow, and thats where it was determined that, instead of having that continue to grow, and providing a false sense of hope for our community, we made the tough decision to close our waiting list and not accept new applications, Leifker says.At this time, the Housing Authority does not know when theyll be able to reopen the waitlist. Leifker says the organizations board will review the decision quarterly.For us, it really comes down to what Congress appropriates to each housing authority, he says.Edwards says she agrees with the decision to close the waitlist, though she hopes to see the voucher program grow in reach and accessibility.To continue to let people apply, youre providing a sense of false hope, she says.She hopes more Green Bay landlords will agree to start accepting vouchers.Relationships are where those conversations happen, because we need the landlords at the table, and we need them to want to work with us, she says.Edwards was on the voucher program for two years. Now, she advocates for housing across Green Bay, working full-time with Joshua, a non-profit advocacy group.Its important that people see that that voucher doesnt mean addicted, that voucher does not mean unstable, it does not mean irresponsible," she says. It means that person is at a space in life that housing is difficult and unaffordable. ...read more read less