A Federal Register notice published on February 27 implements Section 209 of the “Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act” (commonly referred to as S. 2155 or “Economic Growth Act”). That act added Section 38 to the “United States Housing Act of 1937” and made several amendments regarding small public housing agencies (PHAs).
Section 38 defines a rural small PHA as one that predominantly operates in a rural area and that administers a combination of 550 or fewer public housing units and/or vouchers under Section 8(o) of the Housing Act. Section 38 also reduced the frequency of inspections for voucher-assisted units to once every three years and provided exemptions from environmental review requirements for development or modernization projects that have a total cost of less than $100,000.
The Federal Register notice is issued by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH). To avoid confusion with two other small PHA definitions, HUD uses the term “small rural PHAs” when referring to Section 38 small PHAs. The notice refines the definition of a small rural PHA as one that has its primary administrative building in a rural area or that has more than 50% of its combined public housing and voucher units located in a rural area. The notice clarifies that both Housing Choice Vouchers and Project-Based Vouchers are to be counted.
In response to comments from a Federal Register notice published on February 14, 2019 (see Memo 2/19/2019), the discussion section of the February 27, 2020 Federal Register notice also indicates that special purpose vouchers will also count. Special purpose vouchers include Family Unification Program (FUP), Mainstream and Non-Elderly Disabled (NED), and Veterans’ Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) vouchers. HUD posted a list of 1,519 PHAs that meet the definition of a small rural PHA as of January 14, 2020.
The Economic Growth Act requires HUD to use the definition of a rural area codified in regulations of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau [12 CFR 1026.35(b)(2)(iv)(A)]. An area is considered rural during a calendar year if it is a county that is neither in a metropolitan statistical area nor in a micropolitan statistical area adjacent to a metropolitan statistical area, or that is a census block not in an urban area as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Economic Growth Act now requires physical inspections at small rural PHAs to take place only every three years. The notice clarifies that interim inspections are still required within 24 hours when a family or government official reports a life-threatening condition or within 15 days if it is not life-threatening. Lead-safety inspections must still be conducted when applicable.
NLIHC sent a letter to the Senate on December 7, 2017 outlining a number of concerns regarding the then-proposed S. 2155. Regarding the proposal to limit inspections to once every three years, NLIHC wrote:
“The bill jeopardizes residents’ housing quality and the public’s investment in public housing by postponing physical inspections for public housing for three years, except if [a PHA is] deemed ‘troubled.’ The condition of units can deteriorate quickly, while households often do not complain about living conditions for fear of retaliation. We believe that small PHAs that classify as substandard should not go longer than two years without a physical inspection, especially since the low PHAS scores received by these PHAs are symptomatic of poor management and inadequate maintenance. Decreasing oversight of substandard small PHAs that ensures they are addressing their deficiencies could lead to those PHAs being classified as troubled shortly thereafter.”
The Economic Growth Act created a new section that exempts small rural PHAs from any environmental review requirements for development or modernization projects that cost no more than $100,000. That provision is in effect without the need for rulemaking. HUD must still, however, propose rules for projects with total costs greater than $100,000.
The Federal Register notice is at: https://tinyurl.com/ret4lpm
More about public housing is on page 4-25 of NLIHC’s 2019 Advocates’ Guide.
More about Housing Choice Vouchers is on page 4-1 of NLIHC’s 2019 Advocates’ Guide.
More about Project-Based Vouchers is on page 4-7 of NLIHC’s 2019 Advocates’ Guide.
Regarding special purpose vouchers:
More about Family Unification Program (FUP) Vouchers is on page 4-15 of NLIHC’s 2019 Advocates’ Guide.
More about Mainstream and Non-Elderly Disabled (NED) Vouchers is on page 4-18 of NLIHC’s 2019 Advocates’ Guide.
More about Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing Vouchers (VASH) is on page 4-21 of NLIHC’s 2019 Advocates’ Guide.