Day: June 7, 2018

HUD Publishes UPCS-V Inspection Protocol Beta

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

On Monday, June 4, HUD held a UPCS-V Information Technology (IT) Summit. During the session, HUD Inspection Standards and Data for Vouchers (ISDV), presented brief welcoming remarks, an overview of where we are in the protocol development process (29,132 inspections conducted; 170 PHAs trained by April; and 247 participating PHAs), described the protocol; described the decision trees; and provided a technical overview of VEDGA.

During the session, HUD also mentioned that a beta version of the UPCS-V protocol would soon be publicly available. Yesterday, HUD published the beta version of the UPCS-V protocol. Changes in the new version of the protocol are based on three guiding principles: simplicity, transparency, and meeting the objective of national housing policy (i.e., aligning with UPCS). Specific changes include the following:

  • An addition of a glossary;
  • An updated life threatening or emergency (LTE) deficiencies list;
  • Inclusion of carbon monoxide as an inspectable item;
  • Fifty-three percent decrease in length;
  • The alphabetization of the defect dictionary; and
  • An overall reorganization of the document to provide information clearly.

Input and feedback on this version of the protocol can be given at ISDV@hud.gov.

HUD is specifically seeking feedback on the following:

  • Should there be additional terms added to the glossary?
  • Is the order or the protocol logical and does it meet inspector needs?
  • Is there anything missing from the protocol that a novice inspector might need?

The slides from the HUD UPCS-V IT session can be found here.

The beta UPCS-V protocol can be found here.

HUD Begins EnVision Center Demonstration

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

In a press release earlier today, HUD announced the names of the first 17 communities that will receive EnVision Center designations. EnVision Centers are centralized hubs that serve to support four pillars of self-sufficiency: 1) Economic Empowerment; 2) Educational Advancement; 3) Health and Wellness; and 4) Character and Leadership. The EnVision Centers will partner with “federal agencies, state and local governments, non-profits, faith-based organizations, corporations, public housing authorities, and housing finance agencies” and will leverage these “public-private partnerships” to connect households with services to promote self-sufficiency.

HUD plans to develop tools to track and measure resident outcomes and services to ensure that EnVision Centers are able to monitor progress.

NAHRO’s comments on the EnVision Center Demonstration can be found here.

HUD’s full press release can be found here.

The full list of communities receiving the Envision Center designation can be found by clicking below.

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HUD Posts “Keys to A Successful RAD Conversion” Videos

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

On Thursday, May 17 and Friday, May 18, HUD held a training on the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program titled “Keys to A Successful RAD Conversion.” The two day long sessions were held in the Brooke-Mondale Auditorium at HUD’s Headquarters. The training was targeted at PHAs that had not yet contemplated, or had not yet started, a RAD transaction and was meant to provide information about the RAD process. The Department had previously promised to post videos of each of the sessions, which they recently did. The session videos can be found below.

Click below to see each session.

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