NMA Blog

In a press release last week, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued a prepublication copy of the final rule streamlining administrative regulations for the housing choice voucher (HCV), project-based voucher (PBV), public housing, HOME, and multifamily (PBRA) housing programs. The streamlining final rule combines changes in the 2014 and 2015 appropriations acts, elements of HUD’s 2013 temporary compliance options, and other streamlining changes. It will become effective 30 days after publication in the Federal Register.

In response to the publication of the 99-page final rule, which includes regulatory changes in 14 different topic areas, Nan McKay & Associates (NMA) is pleased to announce we have reviewed all our seminars and updated them with new guidance as needed.

HCV seminars updated for the streamlining final rule:

• Blended Occupancy Management
• Developing & Managing Project-Based V0uchers (PBV)
• Fair Housing & Reasonable Accommodation
• HCV and Public Housing Rent Calculation
• HCV Eligibility
• HCV Housing Quality Standards (HQS)
• HCV Occupancy
• HCV Program Management
• HCV Rent Calculation
• HCV Specialist
• Hearing Officer Workshop
• RAD Project-Based Voucher (PBV) Specialist
• Rent Calc II: Hands-On Workshop

Public housing seminars updated for the streamlining final rule:

• Blended Occupancy Management
• Fair Housing & Reasonable Accommodation
• HCV and Public Housing Rent Calculation
• Hearing Officer Workshop
• Public Housing Eligibility
• Public Housing Management (PHM)
• Public Housing Occupancy
• Public Housing Rent Calculation
• Public Housing Specialist
• RAD Project-Based Voucher (PBV) Specialist
• Rent Calc II: Hands-On Workshop

Multifamily seminars updated for the streamlining final rule:

• Blended Occupancy Management
• Fair Housing & Reasonable Accommodation
• Multifamily Housing Specialist (MHS)

The streamlining final rule also includes several new policy options. Our technical writers and subject matter experts are in the process of revising our model ACOP and model administrative plan to include language and guidance for these new options. We are expediting those revisions for our subscribers and will be issuing them as quickly as possible.

Finally, the rule includes significant changes to the earned income disallowance. Due to those changes, the NMA Earned Income Disallowance (EID) Kit is being pulled from our classes and online store as we update it to comply with the new regulations.

We recognize that this is all a lot of new information to absorb. Remember, we're here to help! If you have any questions, you can get in touch with our team by emailing sales@nanmckay.com or calling us at (800) 783-3100.

Senior trainer Samantha Sowards has been a part of the NMA team since 2008. As NMA’s manager of curriculum development, Samantha oversees publications from concept and creation through the ongoing revision process, including NMA Master Books, model policies, and handbooks.

In a press release this morning, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it will soon be publishing a final rule streamlining administrative regulations for the public housing (PH), housing choice voucher (HCV), and multifamily housing programs.

The streamlining final rule combines changes in the 2014 and 2015 appropriations acts, elements of HUD’s 2013 temporary compliance options, and other streamlining changes. As you may recall, PIH published the proposed streamlining rule last year on January 6, 2015, and an interim rule on flat rents September 8, 2015.

Today's 99-page final rule includes revisions to the proposed rule and finalizes the regulations contained in the interim rule. Among numerous other changes, the streamlining final rule:

• Adopts two separate “dates of admission” for the HCV program, specifically the date of voucher issuance and the date of lease-up, for the purposes of verification of social security numbers.
• Does not allow for the use of actual past income that was included in the proposed rule, based on public comments that suggested it would have minimal streamlining benefits.
• Provides for a streamlined income determination for any fixed source of income, even if a person or family with a fixed source of income also has a non-fixed source of income, and requires that a full reexamination and redetermination of income must be performed every three years.
• Revises the earned income disallowance (EID) so that the benefit now applies for a straight 24-month period and PHAs are no longer obligated to track the number of months due to employment starts and stops. For families currently enrolled and participating in EID, the previous requirements will continue to apply. HUD will publish a separate notice with more information about the new administrative requirements.
• Authorizes PHAs to obtain third-party documentation of assets under $5,000 every three years.
• Provides PHAs with the option of making quarterly utility payments for reimbursements totaling $45 or less per quarter. If the PHA opts to do so, it must institute a hardship policy for tenants.
• Includes some but not all of the proposed changes to public housing grievance procedures. PHAs are no longer required to consult resident organizations before appointing a hearing officer, nor must they retain a redacted copy of each hearing decision to be made available to prospective complainants. In place of that requirement, they must maintain a log of hearing officer decisions. However, PHAs must still prepare a summary of any informal settlement, and either party to a grievance may request, at their own expense, that a transcript of a grievance hearing be prepared.
• Clarifies that if an alternative inspection method is used in the HCV program that employs sampling, PHAs may rely on that method only if HCV units are included in the population of units forming the basis of the sample.
• Specifies that PHAs may charge a reasonable housing quality standards (HQS) reinspection fee only if an owner states that a deficiency has been fixed and the deficiency is found during reinspection to persist, or if a reinspection conducted after the expiration of the timeframe for repairs reveals that the deficiency persists. It also specifies that any such fees collected must be used only for activities related to the provision of tenant-based assistance.

A prepublication copy of the final rule is posted here. It will become effective 30 days after publication in the Federal Register.

Keep up with housing industry news, trends, and notices with a subscription to NMA's PIH Alert. You'll receive a daily email filled with up-to-the-minute program changes, requirements, and assistance. Email sales@nanmckay.com for more information.

NMA's revision services team has been working hard to get the latest editions of our Master Books written, published, and shipped to you!

2016: COMING SOON! For the 2016 revision, the NMA Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) Master Book has been brought current with all recent regulatory requirements and guidance, including:

• Expansion of the annual plan contents per Notice PIH 2015-18 on PHA plans
• Replacement of Notice PIH 2009-48 with Notice PIH 2015-12 on administering the community service and self-sufficiency requirement (CSSR)
• Deletion of references to the now obsolete certificate program per Federal Register 2/17/15
• Other changes and corrections for relevance, clarity, and ease of reading

2016: COMING SOON! For 2016, the NMA Public Housing Management (PHM) Master Book has been brought current with all recent regulatory requirements and guidance, in addition to expanding on useful information for public housing managers. Changes include:

• Information on the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program
• Expansion on the required contents of the PHA plan
• Deletion of references to temporary compliance assistance per the expiration of these policies
• Updates accounting for the flat rent requirements set forth in the 2014 appropriations act
• Revisions regarding Notice PIH 2015-12 on the community service and self-sufficiency requirement (CSSR)
• Other corrections and modifications for clarity and ease of reading

2016: COMING SOON! The 2016 edition of the NMA Uniform Physical Condition Standards (UPCS) CD has been brought current with all regulatory guidance, resources, and tools, including:

• The latest version of the RAPID DCD 4.0 software, current as of September 2015
• Additional information pertaining to the latest software, such as the most recent installation guide and instructions for scroll bar usage
• REAC’s most recent Compilation Bulletin, dated March 2015

Questions about your revision services subscriptions? Contact Laurie Durrett in our accounting department and she'll be happy to assist you.

NMA revision services provide a yearly update to your NMA Master Books and model policies with explanations and guidance regarding the most current HUD rules and regulations. To stay updated on the latest program information, try a free 30-day trial subscription to the PIH Alert. Email sales@nanmckay.com to get started.

NMA's revision services team has been working hard to get the latest editions of our model policies and Master Books written, published, and shipped to you!

2015: For 2015, the NMA Model Administrative Plan and Guide has been brought current with all recent regulatory requirements and guidance, including:

• The streamlining portability final rule, issued August 20, 2015, which includes changes to definitions, briefings, procedures, billing, and mandatory suspensions, among others
• The letter to executive directors dated September 15, 2015, which affects portability billing deadlines
• Changes to VAWA policy based on counsel from the National Housing Law Project
• Changes to policy on PHA-owned units in the project-based voucher program per Notice PIH 2015-05
• Removal of references to the certificate program due to the streamlining of 24 CFR Part 982
• Removal of outdated or expired guidance, such as the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act and temporary compliance assistance
• Other minor modifications and clarifications to bring the content current with HUD regulations and guidance

2015: For 2015, the NMA Public Housing Master Book has been brought current with all recent regulatory requirements and guidance, including:

• Changes to the Community Service and Self-Sufficiency Requirement (CSSR) brought about by Notice PIH 2015-12
• Modifications regarding flat rent provisions set forth in the 2015 appropriations act, implemented in the Federal Register notice dated September 8, 2015 and Notice PIH 2015-13
• Updated citations to account for the final rule on affirmatively furthering fair housing
• Other modifications and corrections for clarification and wording

2015: The 2015 revision to the NMA Code of Federal Regulations on CD includes the following regulatory changes:

• Added 2 CFR Part 200 for the updated procurement regulations set forth by the joint interim final rule, “Federal Awarding Agency Regulatory Implementation of Office of Management and Budget’s Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards”
• Removed most of 24 CFR Part 85 regulations, except where stated that these regulations have been redesignated as 2 CFR Part 200
• Revised 24 CFR Part 982 regulations for the housing choice voucher program, which has had all obsolete references to the Section 8 rental assistance certificate program regulations removed throughout, in addition to several additions and revisions to account for the final rule on streamlining the portability process
• Made regulatory revisions to several parts of 24 CFR to account for the changes brought about by the final rule on affirmatively furthering fair housing

Questions about your revision services subscriptions? Contact Laurie Durrett in our accounting department and she'll be happy to assist you.

NMA revision services provide a yearly update to your NMA Master Books and model policies with explanations and guidance regarding the most current HUD rules and regulations. To stay updated on the latest program information, try a free 30-day trial subscription to the PIH Alert. Email sales@nanmckay.com to get started.

Late yesterday HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) issued Notice PIH 2015-04, announcing the expiration of four temporary streamlining options. The temporary options were first announced in Notice PIH 2013-03, and were extended through March 31, 2015 under Notice PIH 2013-26. Today’s notice announces that the temporary compliance options will expire as scheduled and that HUD will not be providing a further extension.

The options available under temporary compliance assistance were:

• Use of actual past income
• Family self-certification for assets worth up to $5,000
• Streamlined annual reexaminations for elderly and disabled families on fixed incomes
• PHA approval of exception payment standards up to 120 percent of fair market rent

As explained in the new notice, all four of the options are included in HUD’s January 6 streamlining proposed rule. Any or all of the options may be made permanent when a final rule is published. Meanwhile, PHAs may request regulatory waivers for good cause pursuant to Notice PIH 2013-20.

To receive more updates and analysis like this on the latest HUD news, subscribe to NMA’s PIH Alert and receive a daily email with breaking stories and other important information for PHAs and housing professionals. Have you entered our contest to win a free year’s subscription to the PIH Alert? Don’t delay, the contest ends March 19!