Training

HUD Publishes Notice on 2022 VAWA Changes

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

On Jan. 6, HUD published a notice in the Federal Register detailing several changes that were made in the 2022 revision to the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). The changes were made in several sections. Many of the changes became effective on Oct. 1, 2022. The Department is seeking comment on the proposed changes by March 6, 2022.

Changes to VAWA Definitions

The revision amends the definition of “domestic violence” to include “any felony or misdemeanor crimes committed under the family or domestic violence laws of the jurisdiction receiving grant funding.” This definition includes “in the case of victim services, the use or attempted use of physical abuse or sexual abuse, or a pattern of any other coercive behavior committed, enabled, or solicited to gain or maintain power and control over a victim, including verbal, psychological, economic, or technological abuse that may or may not constitute criminal behavior” by certain individuals including current or former spouses, current or former co-inhabitants, people sharing a child, or people who commit acts against people protected from acts by family or domestic violence laws of a jurisdiction.

The definitional change occurred on Oct. 1, 2022. While the change is only for grants authorized under VAWA, HUD notes that the current definition of domestic violence covers all of the additional conduct specified in VAWA 2022, and HUD interprets the existing regulatory definitions of “domestic violence” and “stalking” to encompass all of the revised conduct.

Additional Covered Housing Programs

The revision expands the scope of covered programs to include the Section 202 Direct Loan Program, the Housing Trust Fund, and any other federal housing programs. For the Housing Trust Fund, the Department already considers it a covered program through its regulatory authority. The Department will issue new regulations to cover all the additional programs.

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Measuring Resident Agency

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ 1 Comment

The Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future have created a guide to help “outline measures and data gathering practices” that may “amplify resident voice and agency.” The guide is titled “Measuring Resident Agency and Voice in an Affordable Housing Setting: A Set of Guiding Questions to Move Forward.” The measures suggested by the guide fall into four categories. The categories were chosen based on how prevalent they were in current research, their relevance to the affordable housing industry, and their applicability to the affordable housing industry. In each category, the guide presents a few paragraphs on why the category is important, some suggested questions on how to think about the category for organizational staff, and some suggested questions to ask residents.

The categories covered by the guide are the following:

  • Resident Satisfaction – the guide notes that assessing resident satisfaction is a way to check if resident needs and safety are being met, which are needed, if additional and deeper resident engagement is to be had.
  • Social Cohesion – the guide defines this as “connectedness among residents” and notes that it can provide insight into a property’s culture, especially around “neighborliness and collaboration.”
  • Resident Power – the guide notes that this is important because it can help determine what a property remodel can look like or how operations and service delivery can be changed. It is the “ultimate outcome of exercising agency and voice.”
  • Civic Engagement – the guide gives examples of this as “volunteering, attending public hearings, and voting” and notes that these activities have served as indicators of community participation.

The full guide can be found here.

HUD and HHS Launch Housing and Services Resource Center

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

On Dec. 8, in a press release, HUD–in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)–announced the launch of a national Housing and Services Resource Center. According to HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge, “[t]his new joint HHS and HUD center will help communities break down the silos and coordinate the provision of services with housing to ensure that these new resources reach our most vulnerable homeless neighbors.” The press release notes that in every state, there are a number of entities that can help people access housing and supportive services. Many people experiencing homelessness and older individuals need access to community based services like “behavioral health services, personal care assistance, tenancy supports, accessible transportation, and home-delivered meals.”

The goal of the Housing and Services Resource Center is to help coordinate resources to PHAs as well as other entities. The website brings together “Medicaid-funded home and community-based services, behavioral health support, vouchers, and other housing programs.” It also provides examples of successful partnerships and will provide new technical assistance resources. People using the site can do the following:

  • “Learn about how to develop and expand partnerships,
  • Quickly find tools designed for community collaborations;
  • Increase knowledge to support people with disabilities, older adults, and people experiencing homelessness to get and/or keep affordable and accessible housing and voluntary services, and
  • Discover innovative models and strategies.”

The Housing and Services Resource Center can be accessed here.

Join Us!! NAHRO Summer Symposium is Tomorrow!

~ Georgi Banna ~ Leave a comment

Please join National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) for our 2021 Summer Symposium on universal vouchers and expansion of the housing voucher program tomorrow, July 13, 2021. There is no cost to attend the NAHRO Summer Symposium! Register at https://www.nahro.org/events/summer-symposium/registration/.

The NAHRO Summer Symposium is a day-long event on the present and future of the Housing Choice Voucher program. The event will bring thought leaders from across the country along with housing industry professional together to discuss the expansion of the housing voucher program. There is no registration fee to attend the Summer Symposium. Anyone interested can register at https://www.nahro.org/events/summer-symposium/registration/ for the July 13, 2021 NAHRO Summer Symposium.

New HCV Landlord Participation Webinar on Partnerships and Monetary Incentives

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

HUD is hosting a webinar on two new chapters of the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Landlord Strategies Guidebook. The chapters are on establishing partnerships and monetary incentives. The webinar will be oriented towards current HCV landlords, landlords interested in the HCV program, PHAs, rental housing industry groups, and other interested stakeholders.

The one-hour webinar is on June 22, 2021 at 2 pm ET.

Registration for the webinar can be found here.

Vera Creates “Looking Beyond Conviction History” Fact Sheet

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

The Vera Institute of Justice has created a fact sheet titled “Looking Beyond Conviction History.” The fact sheet was created by Vera collaborating with multiple PHAs across the country. It provides eight recommendations for PHAs that want to rethink their admission policies for people with criminal conviction histories. While the full fact sheet offers additional details and rationales, the recommendations are the following:

  • Shorten the lookback period to three years or less;
  • Screen for a limited number of convictions and not for arrests;
  • Conduct an individualized assessment of applicants’ conviction histories;
  • Discontinue the use of “one-strike” policies and adopt a case-by-case decision-making approach;
  • Allow people on probation or parole to live in public housing;
  • Limit the use of past evictions to determine successful tenancy in public housing;
  • Specify and limit denials connected to illegal drug use; and
  • Include absence as a result of incarceration as a permitted temporary absence and allow people to stay housed while completing diversion or alternative-to-incarceration programs.

The website hosting the fact sheet can be found here.

The full fact sheet can be found here.

2021 HCV Implementation Webinar Added to Youtube

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has uploaded their 2021 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Implementation webinar. This presentation focuses on Notice PIH 2021-10 and discusses how the funding for the voucher program in 2021 will be implemented along with key deadlines for additional funding (e.g., housing assistance payment [HAP] set-aside funding and special administrative fees).

The video can be found here or below.

Landlord Strategy Guidebook for PHAs Updated

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has updated their Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Landlord Strategy Guidebook for PHAs. New chapters have been posted on monetary incentives and reimbursement funds, inspections, matching local rental markets, and partnerships. The guidebook provides suggestions and ideas for PHAs looking to recruit new landlords and retain current landlords to the HCV program.

The guidebook has the following chapters:

The Department’s HCV Landlord Resources webpage can be found here.

The full HCV Landlord Strategy Guidebook for PHAs can be found here.

Reminder: Mobility Webinar Today at 2 pm ET

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

The National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials with our friends, CLPHA, is sponsoring a free webinar on HUD’s new mobility demonstration put on by Mobility Works, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and Opportunity Insights. The free webinar is at 2 pm ET today. Registration for the free webinar can be found here.

On July 15, HUD released a notice implementing the $50 million Housing Choice Voucher Mobility Demonstration. This important demonstration will enable selected public housing agencies to implement or expand programs that help families to use housing vouchers to locate in “high-opportunity” neighborhoods, which research shows can significantly improve adult and child well-being on several key measures, including children’s chances of attending college.

Housing agencies participating in the program will receive new housing vouchers as well as funding to provide robust mobility services to families with children. Agencies will also participate in a rigorous evaluation of the effectiveness of their mobility programs.

Please join us for this free webinar on August 11, 2020 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm ET to discuss the details of HUD’s demonstration notice, as well as the lessons that experienced practitioners and researchers have learned about developing effective housing mobility programs.

AGENDA

Moderator, Demetria McCain, Inclusive Communities Project

I. The requirements of the HUD NOFA:
● Doug Rice, Senior Fellow, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
● Megan Haberle, Deputy Director, Poverty & Race Research and Action Council

II. Developing a regional housing mobility plan:
● Andrea Juracek, Executive Director, Housing Choice Partners
● Jeffery Patterson, CEO of the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority

III. Reflections on working with researchers on a mobility evaluation:
● Sarah Oppenheimer, Opportunity Insights
● Andrew Lofton, Seattle Housing Authority

Registration for the free webinar can be found here.

HUD to Host Call on CARES Act HCV Funding

~ Tushar Gurjal ~ Leave a comment

Earlier today, the Department sent an email to PHA executive directors announcing a conference call on Thursday, August 6th at 2 pm ET to discuss HUD’s release of HCV CARES Act funding. The call will be recorded and uploaded to YouTube within a week of it occurring.

The call in information may be found below:

Step 1: Dial into the conference.
Dial-in: 888-251-2949 or 215-861-0694
Access Code: 6514321##
If the automated recording indicates the conference is full, please use overflow information:
Dial in: 888-251-2949 or 215-861-0694
Access Code: 1670463#

Step 2: Join the conference on your computer.
Entry Link: https://ems8.intellor.com/login/830869

A calendar invitation for the call can be found here.