Advocating for the underserved

This letter was submitted with an application for Energy Assistance (a federal program) on behalf of a tenant in Seattle Housing Authority. The Energy Assistance Program administrator asked that thee tenant, who claimed to have no income, make a special appointment to meet with him and explain her circumstances. For many other programs, federal and otherwise, an affidavit signed by the applicant is adequate to "prove" no income. No other applicant was asked or required to make a special appointment.

Dear Energy Assistance Program administrator,

I am submitting this application without proof of income because this SHA tenant claims to have no income. She has proved to the satisfaction of SHA to have no regular income and her rent reflects this. I understand that you require proof to your own standards and when I explained this to the applicant, she declined to follow up with you saying “If they don’t believe me then it’s not worth my time.”

Most of the tenants I work with in SHA have physical and/or mental conditions that prevent them from participating in the activities of daily living that you and I might take for granted. I do not believe that this should also prevent them from benefiting from programs designed to relieve them from the burden of poverty.

Please consider contacting this applicant to ascertain for yourself her income status.

Sincerely,

Social Worker