PIH updates VAWA certification form

HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) has posted a new version of form HUD-50066, Certification of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, or Stalking. In addition to a new expiration date of 7/31/2017, the form has a new creation date of 7/2014 and the term sexual assault has been added to the list of crimes in the title of the form. This revision reflects the Federal Register notice published August 6, 2013, which provided an overview of the Violence against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA 2013) as it applies to HUD programs. The new version differs in significant ways from the previous (2/2011) version of the form:

• It makes clear that victims of sexual assault are protected by VAWA 2013 as well as victims of domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking.
• It clarifies that the form applies not only to family members but also to affiliated individuals of tenant, participant, and applicant families. An affiliated individual was defined in the Federal Register notice to mean, “with respect to an individual—(A) a spouse, parent, brother, sister, or child of that individual, or an individual to whom that individual stands in loco parentis; or (B) any individual, tenant, or lawful occupant living in the household of that individual.”
• The term management agent has been changed throughout the form to manager.
• It expands the list of acceptable forms of documentation of abuse to include a document signed by a mental health professional or the record of an administrative agency.
• It specifies that third-party documentation submitted by the victim and signed by an employee, agent, or volunteer of a victim service provider, an attorney, a medical professional, or a mental health professional must also be signed by the victim.
• While the previous version required these professionals to attest "that the incidents or incidents in question are bona fide incidents of abuse," the new form changes the wording to require them to attest "that the incident of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking is grounds for protection under 24 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 5.2005 or 24 CFR 5.2009."
• It specifically states that "the fact that an individual is a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking shall be kept confidential by the PHA, owner, or manager."
• It requires a victim of violence to provide the name of the perpetrator only if the name is known and safe to provide.

Editor’s note: The translations of form HUD-50066, which can be found in HUD’s Office of Client Information and Policy System (HUDCLIPS) forms library as well as in the limited English proficiency (LEP) resource library maintained by HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO), have not yet been updated.