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HUD recently issued proposed rules intended to harmonize its pet deposit policies. Agents and owners of sites designated for the elderly or handicapped aren’t allowed to discriminate against residents or applicants that own or keep a common household pet [HUD Handbook 4350.1, Ch. 32, Sec. 1]. The agents and owners, however, may require the applicant or resident to pay a pet deposit.
A scathing audit released on June 3 by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors’ Budget and Legislative Analyst has highlighted multiple problems within the San Francisco Housing Authority (SFHA). The SFHA was the first public housing authority established in California and remains the 17th largest housing authority in the country. The audit evaluated the economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of SFHA’s financial, operational, and program management.
On April 30, HUD and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a joint statement concerning the Fair Housing Act requirement that multifamily housing be designed and constructed so as to be accessible to persons with disabilities. The new guidance aims to help design professionals, developers, and builders better understand their obligations, and help persons with disabilities better understand their rights regarding the “design and construction” requirements of the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA).
On May 22, HUD released Annual Adjustment Factors (AAFs) for the Section 8 Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) program for fiscal year 2013. The AAFs, published annually by HUD in the Federal Register, are used to adjust contract rents for units during the initial term of the HAP contract and for all units that are in the Project-Based Certificate program.
HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan recently released details of the Obama administration’s proposed Fiscal Year (FY) 2014 HUD budget. HUD’s proposed 2014 budget provides $47.6 billion, an increase of $4.2 billion or 9.7 percent above the 2012 enacted level, and a 6.7 percent increase over 2013 funding levels. However, these numbers don’t reflect the cuts imposed by sequestration.
If you have residents who still receive a paper check for Social Security or other federal benefit payments, they were required by law to switch to an electronic payment method by March 1, 2013. In order to remain consistent with HUD regulations, benefits received through direct deposit or the Direct Express Debit Card will continue to be treated as income since the payment is a regular periodic payment.
On March 22, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled in case filed by a housing authority against the United States, alleging that the government breached a low-income housing assistance payments contract by requiring the authority to submit rent comparability studies to receive annual rent adjustments [Haddon Housing Assocs. v. U.S.]. This decision represents the first U.S. appeals court decision on whether a 1994 statutory provision was a breach of an original Section 8 HAP contract.
In a memo to staff sent on Feb. 28, Deputy HUD Secretary Maurice Jones said “the impact of sequestration on HUD programs will be dramatic.” The Secretary has testified that over 200,000 people will lose their HUD-funded housing assistance and that HUD must also reduce its salaries and expenses by $66.6 million.
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, The National Fair Housing Alliance, and Poverty & Race Research Action Council recently issued a report entitled “Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing at HUD: A First Term Report Card Part II” that looks at HUD’s record of “affirmatively furthering fair housing” (AFFH) as mandated in Section 3608 of the Fair Housing Act (FHA) during the first term of the Obama administration.
On Feb. 4, 2012, HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing issued a notice (Notice PIH 2013-06) intended to provide public housing authorities with information on the dangers of radon.
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