CHANGES TO THE ADMINISTRATIVE MANUAL AUGUST 2012 TO BE EFFECTIVE JANUARY 2013
Chapter 1
1-II.D. APPLICABLE REGULATIONS page 1-12 as seen below:
Added
• 24 CFR Part 35: Lead-Based Paint
• 24 CFR Part 983: Project-Based Vouchers
• 24 CFR Part 985: The Section 8 Management Assessment Program (SEMAP)
Chapter 2
page 2-3
In addition, HUD regulations provide for additional protections regarding sexual orientation, gender identity, and marital status.
2-I.B. NONDISCRIMINATION
Federal regulations prohibit discrimination against certain protected classes and other groups of people. State and local requirements, as well as PHA policies, can prohibit discrimination against additional classes of people.
The PHA shall not discriminate because of race, color, sex, religion, familial status, age, disability or national origin (called “protected classes”)
Familial status includes children under the age of 18 living with parents or legal custodians, pregnant women, and people securing custody of children under the age of 18.
PHA Policy
The PHA will not discriminate on the basis of marital status, gender identity, or sexual orientation [FR Notice 02/03/12].
PHA Policy
The PHA does not identify any additional protected classes.
Chapter 3
Page 3
3-I.B. FAMILY AND HOUSEHOLD [24 CFR 982.201(c), HUD-50058 IB, p. 13]
The terms family and household have different meanings in the HCV program.
Family
To be eligible for assistance, an applicant must qualify as a family. Family as defined by HUD includes, but is not limited to the following, regardless actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status. single person, who may be an elderly person, disabled person, near-elderly person, or any other single person; or a group of persons residing together. Such group includes, but is not limited to a family with or without children (a child who is temporarily away from the home because of placement in foster care is considered a member of the family), an elderly family, a near-elderly family, a disabled family, a displaced family, or the remaining member of a tenant family. The PHA has the discretion to determine if any other group of persons qualifies as a family.
Gender Identity means actual or perceived gender characteristics.
Sexual orientation means homosexuality, heterosexuality, or bisexuality.
Page 6 3-I.H. ELDERLY AND NEAR-ELDERLY PERSONS, AND ELDERLY FAMILY add
FR Notice 02/03/12]
Page 7 add FR Notice 02/03/12]
Page 10 3IM LIVE IN AIDE delete Therefore,
Add format changes
Page 16 delete 2010 at Social Security Numbers
Delete:
2. A family that consists of two or more household members and at least one household member that has eligible immigration status, is classified as a mixed family, and is eligible for prorated assistance in accordance with 24 CFR 5.520. The PHA may not deny assistance to mixed families due to nondisclosure of an SSN by an individual who does not contend to have eligible immigration status. The HACFL must deny assistance to an applicant family if they do not meet the SSN disclosure, documentation and verification, and certification requirements contained in 24 CFR 5.216.
Page 3-24
c. Open Cases shall may be held if possible without delaying the entry of others following in the waiting list pending final disposition
HACFL Policy
The HACFL will not deny assistance to an otherwise eligible family because the family previously failed to meet its obligations under the Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program or the Welfare to Work voucher program.
• Definitions of key terms used in VAWA are provided in section 16-IX of this plan, where general VAWA requirements and policies pertaining to notification, documentation, and confidentiality are also located.
Definitions
As used in VAWA:
• The term domestic violence includes felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence committed by a current or former spouse of the victim, by a person with whom the victim shares a child in common, by a person who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse, by a person similarly situated to a spouse of the victim under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction receiving grant monies, or by any other person against an adult or youth victim who is protected from that person’s acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction.
• The term dating violence means violence committed by a person who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim; and where the existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on a consideration of the following factors:
- The length of the relationship
- The type of relationship
- The frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship
• The term stalking means:
- To follow, pursue, or repeatedly commit acts with the intent to kill, injure, harass, or intimidate; or
- To place under surveillance with the intent to kill, injure, harass, or intimidate another person; and
- In the course of, or as a result of, such following, pursuit, surveillance, or repeatedly committed acts, to place a person in reasonable fear of the death of, or serious bodily injury to, or to cause substantial emotional harm to (1) that person, (2) a member of the immediate family of that person, or (3) the spouse or intimate partner of that person.
• The term immediate family member means, with respect to a person:
- A spouse, parent, brother or sister, or child of that person, or an individual to whom that person stands in the position or place of a parent; or
- Any other person living in the household of that person and related to that person by blood and marriage.
Notification and Victim Documentation
HACFL Policy
The HACFL acknowledges that a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking may have an unfavorable history (e.g., a poor credit history, a record of previous damage to an apartment, a prior arrest record) that would warrant denial under the PHA'S policies. Therefore, if the HACFL makes a determination to deny admission assistance to an applicant family, the PHA will include in its notice of denial the VAWA information described in section 16-IX.C of this plan and will request that an applicant wishing to claim protection under VAWA notify the PHA within 10 business days.:
A statement of the protection against denial provided by VAWA
A description of PHA confidentiality requirements
A request that an applicant wishing to claim this protection submit to the PHA
Documentation meeting the specifications below with her or his request for an
informal review (see section 16-III.D)
Documentation
Victim Documentation [24 CFR5.2007]
HACFL Policy
If an applicant claims the protection against denial of assistance that VAWA provides to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking, the PHA will request in writing that the applicant provide documentation supporting the claim in accordance with section 16-IX.D of this plan.
An applicant claiming that the cause of an unfavorable history is that a member of the applicant family is or has been a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking must provide documentation (1) demonstrating the connection between the abuse and the unfavorable history and (2) naming the perpetrator of the abuse. The documentation may consist of any of the following:
HUD Form 50066 Certification of statement signed by the victim certifying that the information provided is true and correct and that it describes bona fide incident(s) of actual or threatened domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking A police or court record documenting the domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking.
Documentation signed by a person who has assisted the victim in addressing domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking, or the effects of such abuse. This person may be an employee, agent, or volunteer of a victim service provider; an attorney; or a medical or other knowledgeable professional. The person signing the documentation must attest under penalty of perjury to the person’s belief that the incidents in question are bona fide incidents of abuse. The victim must also sign the documentation.
Chapter 4
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Assistance cannot be provided to the family until all SSN documentation requirements are met. However, if the PHA determines that an applicant family is otherwise eligible to participate in the program, the family may retain its place on the waiting list for a period of time determined by the PHA [Notice PIH 2010-32012-10].
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Pending disclosure and documentation of social security numbers, the PHA will allow the family to retain its place on the waiting list for fifteen (15) days. If not all household members have disclosed their SSNs at the next time the PHA is issuing vouchers, the PHA will issue a voucher to the next eligible applicant family on the waiting list.
And
Nonetheless, the HACFL will make every effort to accommodate LEP applicants by setting up a separate briefing, providing an interpreter, providing information from HUD’s LEP website, etc. but requests for such services must be requested in advance to assure that the HACFL has the appropriate resources at hand.
Page 16 add
If the PHA determines that the family is eligible to receive assistance, the PHA will invite the family to attend a briefing in accordance with the policies in Chapter 5.
Chapter 5
5.I.B. Briefing add:
The head of household is and all adult family members are required to attend the briefing unless an adult is in school or otherwise documented not to be able to attend in which case they will be required to attend a later briefing. The fact that a member may not have attended a briefing will not excuse the family from all members being compliant with Family Obligations under the program.
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HACFL Policy
The PHA will provide the following additional materials in the briefing packet:
When PHA-owned units are available for lease, a written statement that the family has the right to select any eligible unit available for lease, and is not obligated to choose a HACFL-owned unit.
Referral information to other social service providers in the community.
Information on how to fill out and file a housing discrimination complaint form.
The publication Things You Should Know (HUD-1140-OIG) that explains the types of actions a family must avoid and the penalties for program abuse.
Information about the protections afforded by the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act (PTFA) (see section 13-II.G)
Information about the protections afforded by the Violence against Women Act of 2005 (VAWA) to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking (see section 16-IX.C)
“Is Fraud Worth It?” (form HUD-1141-OIG), which explains the types of actions a family must avoid and the penalties for program abuse
“What You Should Know about EIV,” a guide to the Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) system published by HUD as an attachment to Notice PIH 2010-19
Page 10
Live in aides will be allocated a separate bedroom.
Chapter 6
Page 11 – add: on 6I.D.Earned Income that:
The file will be documented appropriately
Clarify on Page 6-26 that:
Treatment of Overpayment Deductions from Social Security Benefits
The PHA must make a special calculation of annual income when the Social Security Administration (SSA) overpays an individual, resulting in a withholding or deduction from his or her benefit amount until the overpayment is paid in full. The amount and duration of the withholding will vary depending on the amount of the overpayment and the percent of the benefit rate withheld. Regardless of the amount withheld or the length of the withholding period, the PHA must use the reduced benefit amount after deducting only the amount of the overpayment withholding from the gross benefit amount [Notice PIH 2010-32012-10].
Add on Page 27 that :
Kinship guardianship assistance payments (Kin-GAP) and other similar guardianship payments are treated the same as foster care payments and are likewise excluded from annual income [Notice PIH 2008-302012-1].
Periodic Payments Excluded from Annual Income
• Lump-sums or prospective monthly amounts received as deferred disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) [FR Notice 11/24/08].
Chapter 7
Format changes and changes in the syntax of the Chapter with the exception of pages where we deleted or added as follows:
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May be provided by applicant or participant
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Up-front income verification (UIV) refers to the PHA’s use of the verification tools available from independent sources that maintain computerized information about earnings and benefits. UIV will be used to the extent that these systems are available to the PHA.
There may be legitimate differences between the information provided by the family and UIV-generated information. If the family disputes the accuracy of UIV data, no adverse action can be taken until the PHA has independently verified the UIV information and the family has been granted an opportunity to contest any adverse findings through the informal review/hearing process of the PHA. See Chapter 6 for the PHA’s policy on the use of UIV/EIV to project annual income.
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Copy of the receipts and/or payment stubs for the 60 days prior to PHA request
Third-party verification form from the state or local child support enforcement agency
Third-party verification form from the person paying the support
Family's self-certification of amount received and of the likelihood of support payments being received in the future, or that support payments are not being received. If payments are made through a state or local entity, the HACFL will request a record of payments for the past 12 months and request that the entity disclose any known information about the likelihood of future payments.
Third-party verification from the person paying the support
Copy of a separation or settlement agreement or a divorce decree stating amount and type of support and payment schedules
Copy of the latest check and/or payment stubs
Family's self-certification of amount received and of the likelihood of support payments being received in the future, or that support payments are not being received.
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The HACFL may request further written verification from the institution of higher education regarding the student’s tuition amount if the documentation appears to be tampered with and/or is in any way In addition the HACFL will request written verification of the student’s tuition amount.