The Renton Housing Authority will shift resources around to cover any lack of federal support for its Section 8 housing assistance programs due to federal budget cuts.

“The surplus from non-federal programs will underwrite any loss from federal programs going forward to the extent the individual program reserves prove insufficient to cover operating and rent assistance costs,” Mark Gropper, the agency’s executive director.

The Renton Housing Authority is making plans for a more sustainable business model, with the Sunset Highlands Redevelopment project, in the wake of tumultuous federal budget cuts.

According to Gropper, the housing authority will be at about 92 percent of what it needs to operate its publicly subsidized housing budget in light of the federal sequester, or budget cuts.

“You can’t operate on a deficit forever and yet we are committed to our families and will use unrestricted non-federal resources as needed to meet our mission objectives and expand the agency’s ability to deliver quality affordable housing,” said Gropper about the future of federal funding. “This isn’t the first time we’ve experienced the ebbing and flowing of federal dollars.”

He’s used to it now with his 30 years of experience in the sector. As it has in the past, the housing authority will use revenues from its diversified rental portfolio to support programs effected by federal budget cuts.

People should not worry or panic about what this could mean for the Renton Housing Authority’s involvement with the Highlands project, Gropper said.

The project is promising because with it the Renton Housing Authority creates a new model of business for the housing authority that doesn’t rely as much on federal dollars. They are partnering with property owners and private developers to make the Highlands project come together. In doing so, the housing authority is creating a new model for its budget that is more like a private housing operator.

In general, with its diversified rental portfolio, Renton Housing Authority’s unrestricted resources from properties that don’t have federal contracts will help them weather the storm, Gropper said.

It will allow them to proceed with their redevelopment aspirations and create a model that is sustainable and can’t be jeopardized by the relinquishing of federal money, he said.