Due in large part to the rapid escalation of energy costs during the past several years, more than 2700 Public Housing Authorities thoughout the country are confronted with the problem of a never-widening gap between income and operating expenses.

The largest factor contributing to the overall operating cost of PHAs has been energy. Energy costs now average over $670 per dwelling unit per year,varying substantially between individual projects. In 1980 the cost of energy for the total public housing stock will exceed $740 million.

Based on historic price trends it can be estimated that energy costs in public housing have risen some 400 percent since 1970-- from $185 million spent for energy in 1970 to $740 million estimated to be spent in 1980. Most of this increase has occurred during the last few years and fuel costs are expected to increase over general inflation for many years to come.

This report is part of the collection of scanned historical documents available to the public.