Affordable Housing

Chris Campbell Joins NAHRO for the Summer!

~ Chris Campbell ~ Leave a comment

Greetings! My name is Chris Campbell, and I’m a Master of Public Policy (MPP) student at the University of Michigan. I’ll be interning remotely with NAHRO’s Policy and Program Development team this summer.  

Before starting graduate school, I worked for the Los Angeles City Council’s Office of the Chief Legislative Analyst, where I staffed the Planning and Land Use Management Committee.  My work with the Committee introduced me to the basic aspects of the nation’s affordable housing shortage, as well as the debate over which strategies can best help families meet their housing costs.  

Everyone needs a place to live – as a lifelong resident of Southern California, I understand the stress high housing costs can place on a family. This isn’t just a West Coast problem, however. Cities and rural areas across the country need more affordable, high-quality homes to promote the health and well-being of their residents, a fact laid bare by the COVID-19 pandemic. The urgency of our nation’s affordable housing shortage will only grow in its aftermath. I look forward to working with NAHRO’s member agencies and HUD this summer to gain more insight into how federal, state and local government can work together to help renters and owners keep a roof over their heads, especially in these unprecedented times.  

I’ll be posting to the NAHRO blog weekly about housing-related policy developments, so stay tuned!  

Mainstream Voucher Allocation Notice Published

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

Earlier today, HUD published Notice PIH 2020-09 titled “CARES Act Mainstream Funding for Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) Awarded Funding Allocations in the 2017 and 2019 Competitions.” This notice establishes the process for allocating new Mainstream vouchers according to the requirements of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). Mainstream vouchers are vouchers that serve households that include a non-elderly person with disabilities.

Eligible PHAs are those that previously received a Mainstream voucher allocation through either:

A list of those PHAs can be found here (eligible PHAs are those PHAs with entries under the “2017/2018 Awards” column and the “2019 Awards” column).

Eligible PHAs will receive an increase in Mainstream voucher units of thirty percent. If an increase results in a fractional voucher, HUD will round up. Increased budget authority will be calculated based on per unit cost using the most recent data available to HUD for each PHA. A PHA may decline this increased allocation. Administrative funds will be provided in accordance with PIH 2020-04 (a notice implementing the Housing Choice Voucher program in calendar year 2020).

The Department will publish additional guidance on receiving and using extraordinary administrative fees (these fees are not provided in this allocation). Additionally, Mainstream voucher programs will also be eligible for additional CARES act supplemental HAP funding, the distribution of which will be detailed in forthcoming guidance.

The COVID-19-related waivers detailed in PIH Notice 2020-05 are applicable to Mainstream vouchers.

The complete notice can be found here.

Webinar Tomorrow: Managing During COIVD-19: Community Development: CDBG, HOME, ESG

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

Join NAHRO and Acting HUD Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development (CPD) John Gibbs from 2 p.m. – 3 p.m. eastern tomorrow, May 13, 2020, for a discussion on CPD’s response to the COVID-19 emergency. With a focus on CDBG, HOME, and ESG, Acting Assistant Secretary Gibbs will provide an update on CPD’s efforts to provide communities with access to waivers and supplemental funding and provide insights into CPD’s actions to address the COVID-19 crisis. Following the update, Acting Assistant Secretary Gibbs and his staff will join us for a moderated question and answer session.

Register for the complimentary webinar here!

HUD PIH to Hold Conference Call on Friday (5/15/2020 at 3:30 pm ET)

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing will hold a conference call on Friday (5/15/2020 at 3:30 pm ET). Planned topics for discussion include the following:

  • PHAS waivers including physical inspections;
  • Protection of personally identifiable information;
  • Remote video inspections best practices; and
  • Information on a quick guide created to assist housing authorities with strategies and planning related to the impact of the pandemic on communities and stakeholders.

Call in details may be found below.

Suggested Attendees: PHA Executive Directors or Operations Managers, PHA occupancy specialists, PHA staff performing both PH and HCV HQS inspections, and PHA accountants.
See below for call-in and login information:
Step 1: Dial into the conference.
Dial-in: 1-877-369-5243 or 1-617-668-3633
Access Code: 0339017##
Need an international dial-in number?
If the automated recording indicates the conference is full, please use overflow information:
Dial-in: 1-877-369-5243 or 1-617-668-3633 Access Code: 0154662#
Step 2: Join the conference on your computer.
Entry Link: https://ems8.intellor.com/login/826642

A calendar invitation may be found here.

CARES Act CDBG Funding Allocated

~ Eric Oberdorfer ~ Leave a comment

On May 11, HUD announced the allocation of $1 billion of CARES Act funding through the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program. To date, HUD has allocated over $3 billion funding to communities to help them combat coronavirus and alleviate economic hardship through funding from the CARES Act.

Continue reading →

1st Round of CARES Act Admin. Fees Released

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

Earlier today, HUD released a press release announcing the first round of administrative fee funding for the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). The new funding will impact all PHAs, including Moving to Work (MTW) agencies. The funding covers two months worth of administrative fees and may be used for traditional purposes as well as for new costs related to protecting assisted families and employees impacted by the COVID-19 event.

Assistant Secretary Kurtz stated that “HUD is committed to assisting PHAs during this time so that assisted families can stay safe and healthy . . . [p]roviding these additional funds to PHAs will give them more tools to address local needs and respond to the Coronavirus pandemic as effectively as possible.”

Eligible uses of the administrative fees may be found in PIH 2020-08 here (NAHRO summary here).

HUD’s press release on the CARES Act administrative fee funding may be found here.

Allocations of the funding may be found here.

PHAs Receive CARES Act Supplemental Operating Funds

~ Eric Oberdorfer ~ Leave a comment

Today, HUD allocated the $685 million in supplemental Operating Fund dollars included in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to PHAs. The funding was allocated to PHAs via the Operating Fund formula. In HUD’s press release announcing the allocations, Assistant Secretary for PIH Hunter Kurtz noted “[t]he work of public housing authorities has never been more important than today.” PHAs with public housing programs can use the supplemental funding to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus. HUD issued guidance on how these supplemental funds can be spent on Tuesday, April 28.

A list of allocations can be found here. 

Thank you to everyone that contacted your legislators through NAHRO’s Advocacy Action Center to help get the CARES Act passed last March. Your messages of how important affordable housing is during a pandemic played a critical role in the HUD programs receiving supplemental relief funding.

NAHRO is providing additional coronavirus resources on our website.

NAHRO Webinar: Managing During COVID-19: Funding, Flexibility, and Fulfilling our Mission; May 5, 2020 at 2pm Est

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

NAHRO would like to invite you to a complimentary webinar on Tuesday, May 5, 2020 at 2pm eastern time – Managing During COVID-19: Funding, Flexibility, and Fulfilling our Mission.

Housing agencies are responding in real-time to the coronavirus and its impact on day-to-day operations and the residents they serve. Hear from federal officials and NAHRO on available resources and flexibilities provided by Congress and being implemented by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

You will also hear from local housing officials on how they are adapting their programs in the current environment.

We will be joined on the webinar by:

  • R. Hunter Kurtz, Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
  • Patricia Wells, CME, NAHRO Senior Vice-President, Executive Director, Oakland Housing Authority, CA
  • David S. Gates, CS-PHM, CSO-PH, CME, CMPO, Executive Director, Housing Authority of the County of Lonoke, AR

Bring your questions and comments and join your fellow PHAs for this interactive webinar!

Register for Managing During COVID-19: Funding, Flexibility, and Fulfilling our Mission!

CARES Act Supplemental Operating Fund Guidance Released

~ Eric Oberdorfer ~ Leave a comment

On April 28, HUD issued Notice PIH-2020-07 titled “Implementation of Supplemental Guidance to the Federal Fiscal Year 2020 Operating Fund Appropriations.” The Notice provides guidance on the allocation and eligible uses of the $685 million supplemental funding included in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, as well as the additional flexibilities provided through the CARES Act to use previously appropriated Capital and Operating Funds to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus. The Notice applies to both MTW and Non-MTW PHAs. Obligations of the supplemental funding will be calculated based on each project’s pro rata Calendar Year (CY) 2020 Operating Fund grants. Using the waiver authority provided in the CARES Act, HUD is waiving the requirement to make payments equal to one-twelfth of the total annual Operating Fund under the formula so that HUD may make CARES Act supplemental funding available to PHAs via a single obligation.

Continue reading →

2020 HTF Allocations Announced

~ Eric Oberdorfer ~ Leave a comment

HUD has released it’s Housing Trust Fund (HTF) allocations for FY 2020. Allocations for FY 2020 total $322,564,267. Funds are distributed to states via formula, with larger states receiving more funding. All states receive at least $3 million. Larger states, such as California, New York, Texas, and Florida received $50.8 million, $29 million, $16.5 million, and $14.4 million respectively. Housing Trust Fund dollars can be used to increase and preserve the supply of rental housing for extremely low-income families with incomes between 0 and 30 percent of area median income (AMI) and very low-income families with incomes between 30 and 50 percent of AMI, including homeless families. HTF dollars can also be used for increasing homeownership for extremely low-income and very low-income families.

A full list of state awards can be found here.