Local leaders are rallying against a proposal that could hike rents for low-income residents.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is considering a new method to calculate how much households will get for rent.

The Section 8 program helps low-income families, capping their monthly rent to about 30 percent of their income.

Under the new rule, the value of the monthly vouchers would decrease for low-income neighborhoods and increase for high-income neighborhoods.

HUD says the goal is to encourage Section 8 households to live in better areas, but critics say it will make more people homeless.