On January 12, HUD posted 2017 electronic Operating Fund Forms 52723 and 52722 to the Financial Management Division (FMD) website. This is ahead of their target posting date of January 17. PHAs must submit their completed forms by February 7, 2017 to their local Field Office.
HUD Publishes RAD Notice Revision 3
HUD has published the third revision of the RAD Notice (PIH 2012-32 / H 2017-03 Rev 3). According to a RADBlast email, the notice makes the following changes:
First Component – the revisions “simplify certain program requirements, create new flexibilities . . . and strengthen tenant rights.”
Second Component – the revisions “improve the rent-setting options available to owners.”
HUD has created a “blackline version” which tracks the changes made from Revision 2 to Revision 3. NAHRO will provide additional information in the coming days as we delve deeper into the notice.
The Third Revision of the RAD Notice can be found here.
The “Blackline Version” which tracks changes from the previous notice can be found here.
HUD to Publish Lead-Free Final Rule and additional AFH Tools
Tomorrow, January 13, 2017, HUD will publish in the Federal Register the lead-free final rule and additional Assessment of Fair Housing (AFH) tools. The final rule titled “Requirements for Notification, Evaluation and Reduction of Lead-Based Paint Hazards in Federally Owned Residential Property and Housing Receiving Federal Assistance; Response to Elevated Blood Lead Levels” adopts a revised definition of “elevated blood lead level” (EBLL) in children under the age of 6 to track the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance. The rule will become effective 30 days after publication and compliance will be required by 6 months after publication. NAHRO will provide additional coverage of the final rule in the next few days.
The Department also released two additional AFH tools:
- A Revised Local Government Tool: This tool is meant for use by CDBG, HOME, ESG or HOPWA recipients. One of the major changes to the tool is an insert for use by PHAs with 1,250 of fewer units that choose to collaborate with their local governments. NAHRO is pleased that HUD increased number of PHAs that can use this insert, making collaboration easier.
- A Final PHA Tool: The notice states that this tool has been approved, but “the Notice does not trigger the obligation of PHAs to conduct and submit an AFH . . . as HUD has not yet provided PHAs with the data they will need.” Again, one of the major changes from the proposed tool includes increasing the threshold for the Qualified PHA insert to 1,250 units.
NAHRO will continue to look through these tools and will provide additional coverage to our members in the coming days.
The Lead-Free final rule can be found here.
The Local Government AFH Tool can be found here.
The PHA AFH Tool can be found here.
Reminder!! Dr. Carson Confirmation Hearing for HUD Today!
The United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs will hold a confirmation hearing for HUD Secretary-Designate Carson at 10 am ET on Thursday, January 12, 2017. The hearing will be held at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Room 538.
The confirmation hearing will be webcast live on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hearing website. Dr. Carson’s written testimony is also posted, here, on the Senate Banking Committee website.
John Bohm, NAHRO Acting CEO, is attending the hearing and additional coverage of the confirmation hearing will be available for members in the January 15 Monitor.
HUD Housing Counseling Final Rule Conference Call
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently published a final rule implementing statutory requirements on housing counselor certification. Among other things, it provides that housing counseling required by HUD or provided in connection with any HUD program must be delivered by a HUD certified counselor working for a HUD-approved housing counseling agency.
HUD’s Office of Housing Counseling will hold a conference call for housing counseling funders and service providers to explain this new rule and help you determine if your housing counseling program may be covered under this final rule. This informative session is open to the public. Please note that if you attended the call on December 19 for stakeholders who participate in HUD’s Housing Counseling Program you do not need to attend this call.
Please register for this Stakeholders Conference Call on the Final Rule on Housing Counseling Certification on January 13, 2017 2:00 PM EST at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8027531475293201155.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
For more information on HUD’s Final Rule for Housing Counseling Certification including the press release, final rule, and frequently asked questions, please visit: https://www.hudexchange.info/programs/housing-counseling/certification/.
HUD Publishes UPCS-V 2.0 Protocol
HUD has published the 2.0 version of the UPCS-V protocol. This new version revises the previous 1.5 version with some substantive changes as to what constitutes a deficiency as well as grammar edits, formatting edits, and language clarifications. In addition to the protocol itself, HUD has also published a “UPCS-V Protocol Change Tracker” which documents all the changes from the 1.5 version of the protocol to the 2.0 version of the protocol.
The UPCS-V 2.0 Protocol can be found here.
The UPCS-V Protocol Change Tracker can be found here.
HUD Secretary-Designate Carson to Have Confirmation Hearing on 1/12/17
The United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs will hold a confirmation hearing for HUD Secretary-Designate Carson at 10 am ET on Thursday, January 12, 2017. The hearing will be held at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Room 538.
The confirmation hearing will be webcast live on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hearing website.
NAHRO will cover this hearing and other HUD-related transition events in the coming weeks.
Book-Rich Environment Initiative Launched
On January 5th; HUD, Dept. of Education, and President Obama’s My Brother’s Keeper Task Force along with the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading (GLR), the National Book Foundation (NBF) and the Urban Libraries Council (ULC) launched the Book-Rich Environment Initiative at Washington, D.C.’s Southwest Public Library. HUD Secretary Julian Castro, Dept. of Education Secretary John King, and My Brother’s Keeper Task Force Chair Broderick Johnson along with Adrianne Todman, Executive Director of the District of Columbia Housing Authority spoke about the importance of education as the key to opening the door to future opportunities.
The Book-Rich Environment Initiative has three major components – Book Distribution, Partnership Building, and Library Engagement. Book Distribution will launch in Spring 2017 with local events that will introduce children and families to their local library, summer learning and literacy, and preparing to go back to school and success in the next grade level. Partnership building will focus on creating strong local partnerships between HUD-assisted housing providers; such as PHAs; with their local library, local and national non-profits and foundation, and the children and family served by these organizations. Library engagement between PHAs, the children and families living in HUD-assisted properties, and the local library is essential to keeping children engaged in reading. Engagement strategies include mobile libraries in public housing buildings, summer learning opportunities and registering children and families for library cards.
NAHRO attended the Book-Rich Environment Initiative launch and continues to partner with the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading and HUD on promoting and improving the education outcomes of children living in HUD-assisted properties.
More information on the Book-Rich Environment Initiative can be found, here, in HUD’s press release.
HUD OIG Publishes Semiannual Report to Congress
HUD’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) has published it’s Semiannual Report to Congress for the second half of fiscal year 2016. These reports are “intended to keep the Secretary and the Congress fully informed of significant findings, progress the Agency has made and recommendations for improvement.”
The report can be found here.
HUD Awards $1.95 Billion for Local Homeless Programs
Yesterday, HUD announced $1.95 billion in FY 2016 Continuum of Care (CoC) grants to provide support to over 7,600 local homeless housing and service programs across the United States, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. View a complete list of the state and local homeless projects awarded here.
This year, HUD continued to strongly urge CoCs to compete for funding by making challenging decisions that involved shifting funds from existing projects to new projects considered to be more effective, such as investments in permanent supportive housing and rapid re-housing.
For this competition, local CoCs reallocated a combined $103 million in renewal funding from lower performing projects in order to apply for new housing projects. Together with funding for permanent housing “bonus” projects, HUD is awarding at total of $139 million for new projects.
Additional information on HUD’s FY 2016 CoC awards will be included in the forthcoming edition of the NAHRO Monitor (members only)
ICYMI: NAHRO members have long been on the front lines of preventing and ending homelessness. A recent NAHRO white paper demonstrates how public housing authority (PHA) are collaborating with communities and perusing new directions and opportunities for ending homelessness. Case studies include: ending veteran homelessness in Houston, Texas; implementing medical respite to save lives and reduce costs in Fargo, North Dakota.; and using a model for working with the chronically homeless in encampment settings by the City of West Sacramento, Yolo County, California.
The NAHRO Blog: Legislative & Policy Updates from Washington, DC 